Rebels Win Liberty District for the Third Year in a Row

The Rebels ended their varsity field hockey season on a high. Amber Beaudoin coached Fairfax to its third straight district title in 2011 and made it to the regional semifinals for the second year in a row.

Fairfax defeated West Springfield with 2-0 in the quarterfinal on October 28 to get there, but fell to South County 2-1 in overtime on Halloween.

“We came out on our heels. [South County] dominated the first 10 minutes and got an early goal. We came back out very strong and scored to tie it up. It was a feisty game,” said assistant coach Alicia Larkins regarding the regional semifinal match. “But we had several shots where we didn’t have anyone on the back post. We went into overtime sudden death (seven-on-seven) and they got a goal.”

Two years ago Beaudoin hired Larkins on as her assistant coach. Larkins is a Fairfax High alum who played under Beaudoin from 2000-04. The dynamic duo will also coach the U12 Rampage this winter, an indoor Fairfax Police Youth Club (FPYC) team. Larkins said she credits the FPYC league and others like it for the growth and explosion of more experienced high school players in recent years. 

"When I played in high school no one had ever played before their freshman year and now we’re getting players who have played for two or three years,” she said. “If you get girls in their freshman year who have played before, who have the basic skills and all you have to do is refine them, it really helps carry the team’s success.”

Beaudoin and Larkins backed that belief up by bringing four freshmen up to the varsity squad for the playoffs this season. Larkins said every girl on the team is strong including Tracy Neill, Tiffany Balbuena and Cassidy Tammaro who all had great seasons for the Rebel offense.

Neill scored a team-high seven post-season goals to tie Tammaro to lead the Rebels this year. Unfortunately, Tammaro was injured in the match against McLean in the Liberty District final. Fairfax had a 182 to 69 penalty-corner advantage on the year and out shot its opponents almost four to one at 229 to 60. But it was Fairfax’s strategic defense that was the key to the team’s success.

“We had a strong offense but I would say our defense was our strong point,” Larkins said. “We played four in the back with a kind of soccer formation, with a stopper and a sweeper. We do a lot of transitioning the ball where we would switch the field through the back line, which is how a lot of college teams play.”

The collegiate style proved effective as four Rebels made All-District teams in 2011 and at least three players including Shannon Parker, Sam Zelenack and Shannon Cosgrove have been scouted by college recruiters. Rebel goalkeepers Kelly Walker and Mack Anderson were stalwart this year. Larkins said they rotated back and forth during the season to have a fresh yet experienced keeper in case a match went into sudden death or strokes.

“I think it’s hard to pick four girls who deserved the All-District team because I think they all deserve to be on it,” Larkins said. “We have a very solid back line and solid keepers who are both dependable.”

The 2011 Fairfax Rebel varsity field hockey team (15-7 on the season) had 10 seniors on its roster this season. Nine of those players will return in 2012 from the Liberty Championship team.

If there is one area Larkins believes needs improvement, it’s finishing on penalty corners. With almost a three to one advantage in corners, Larkins said the team should have scored more goals.

“We had a lot of corners in every game and not a lot of goals, which was our biggest weakness,” she said. “When they’re on, they were great but one of our biggest problems was getting our forward on the back post. We just didn’t capitalize on the shots we had.”

Still, Larkins said she feels confident in the returning youth next season and enjoys coaching with her former head coach.

“We do have a pretty strong youthful team coming up,” she said. “Amber is a really good mentor and I enjoy learning form her and it’s a lot of fun being around the girls - they teach me a lot as well.”