Shore girls cap brilliant season with Group I title

Shore Regional’s Stephanie Rubert bounces a shot off South Hunterdon goalie Jen Williamson during the first half of Sunday’s game at The College of New Jersey, Ewing. PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY

Blue Devils dominate So. Hunterdon to take home 10th championship

By doug mckenzie

Staff Writer

When the Shore Regional girls field hockey team lost 1-0 to Pingry last November in the NJSIAA Group I championship game, the heart-broken Blue Devils walked off the field certain that they were the better team.

Shore Regional’s Amanda Arnold looks to pass to an open teammate during the Group I final at the College of New Jersey, Ewing, on Sunday.

And that only made them feel worse about the outcome.

"We definitely had a bad taste in our mouths all year from that game," admitted senior Amanda Arnold. "We felt we were the better team, we just didn’t play like it. We were definitely bitter about it."

But Shore head coach described a different feeling.

"It was like a little pain in the heart, and it just sat there," she said.

Shore’s Lianne Byram tries to beat South Hunterdon’s Antonia Wheelwright to a loose ball during Sunday’s Group I final.

The pain sat there all the way up until Sunday, when the Blue Devils finally had their chance to erase the memory of last year’s disappoint with yet another trip to the Group I final at the College of New Jersey, Ewing, this time against South Hunterdon.

And this time, Shore proved beyond a shadow of a doubt who the better team was, thoroughly dominating South Hunterdon en route to a 2-0 win, and the team’s 10th title in 12 trips to the final.

"Finally, today, with about a minute left on the clock, I could feel (that pain), it just left," Williams said. "It was a demon that sat inside all of us. We never talked about not getting here, we never talked about what happened last year. We just kept working forward."

And while the entire Blue Devils team had plenty of reason to celebrate on Sunday, Williams noted that it was particularly gratifying for the girls who played in last year’s final.

Shore Regional High School’s Amanda Arnold is surrounded by teammates after scoring the game-winning goal in Sunday’s Group I final.

"The most perfect thing would be to have the entire team come back to redeem themselves," she explained. "But the five seniors who were on the field last year aren’t here. But for those six kids who did come back, you could see it when they practiced, you could see it when they ran, there was one thing on their minds."

Williams added that the girls did an outstanding job of taking the season one game at a time, and not looking too far ahead at any point.

"We didn’t talk about anything except the conference until we’d won that," she said. "But it was always in the back of our heads— we’re just playing these games to get to the state final. It was like a fairy tale, and sometimes it doesn’t work out that way. But these kids were determined to make it work that way."

As for the championship game itself, much like so many of Shore games this year, it was a mismatch from the very start.

The Blue Devils wave good-bye to their parents and friends before the long trip down to The College of New Jersey, Ewing, the site of their championship win.

Shore came out and set the tone from the beginning, peppering Eagles’ goalie Lindsay Wood with shots throughout the first half. But Wood, who was exceptional in front of the cage, managed to hold the Blue Devils’ scoreless through most of the first half, recording 13 saves in the first half alone.

But with just 7:20 left in the first half, one of Shore’s dynamic duo, Arnold, popped a shot that deflected into the right side of the cage for her school-record 49th goal of the year. The goal tied Arnold with Eastern’s Shaun Banta for the highest total in the state this year.

Just 1:13 later, the other half of the dynamic duo, senior Lauren Hennessey, made her mark on the final, carrying the ball down the middle of the circle and blasting a shot into the left side for her 28th goal. Hennessey, who also assisted on Arnold’s goal, has had a remarkable year in her own right, setting a school season-record with 49 assists.

With a 2-0 lead a the half, Shore, who had outshot the Eagles 15-0 and had a 10-0 advantage on penalty corners, was in the drivers’ seat and well on its way to a state title.

The second half was more of the same, with the Blue Devils dictating the tempo, and keeping the ball in the Eagles’ side of the field for much of the game. Shore goalie Jen Phillips, who has played solid all year for the Blue Devils, was reduced to the role of cheerleader for most of the game, and had to make just one save to record her 16th shutout of the year. In total, Shore outshot the Eagles 25-1 and had a 17-3 advantage on penalty corners.

But Williams said that her team’s dominant play did nothing to reduce South Hunterdon’s accomplishments this year.

"They were in the state finals for a reason, but their strength lied in their goaltending," she said. "But watching the game, we were saying it’s just a matter of time. We were completely dominating the game, and we knew eventually that ball was going to get by that goaltender. And when Amanda made that reverse-stick shot and that went in, we were saying ‘we must be lucky, this must be our day’."

But Williams admitted that her team was full of confidence before the whistle was blown.

"Before we walked on the field, the kids had confidence and I don’t think they were feeling pressure," she said. "I told them that pressure comes from not being prepared, and they were prepared. And even when that goalie was making kick-save after kick-save, they never lost their poise, and they never got frustrated. And I think that comes with confidence."

Arnold, who has committed to play at Ohio University next fall, agreed with her coach’s assessment of their confidence level.

"Last year we came out on our heels, and not as confident," she said. "This year was different, especially after we came out and starting dominating from the beginning. We knew it was just a matter of time.

"I think everybody was just really focused on what had to be done," she added.

Williams pointed to the veteran leadership on this year’s squad to one of the key factors to the Blue Devils’ success on the field.

"I really have to give a lot of credit to these five seniors, but especially to Lauren and Amanda, who are superstars in this sport, but never act that way," she added. "They never act better than anybody else, they never put anybody down on the team, they’re always supportive, and their character, I think, was the key to this whole season."

But make no mistake, Williams has strong feelings for the entire squad, not just her departing seniors.

"It was such a great year," she said. "I just like these kids and like this team so much. This is one of my favorite teams.’

As for Hennessey, who has narrowed her college choices to Monmouth and Connecticut, she said that this championship is the perfect ending to what has been a memorable career at Shore, playing for one of the state’s elite programs.

"Nothing compares to winning a state championship in your senior year," she said. "I can’t tell you how amazing the feeling is to come back here and win."

With the win, Shore ended their season at 22-1, with their only loss coming in a non-conference game against West Essex just before the state playoffs began.

But although their record may not indicate it, try convincing the Shore Regional girls that they did not have a perfect season. Or at the very least, a perfect ending.

Then again, it you ask them, they expected this from the first practice in August. They knew all along— it was just a matter of time.

—Chris Kelly contributed to this story