Field hockey playoff preview: Will Exeter, Winnacunnet, Portsmouth, Dover, York make title runs?
The high school field hockey regular season has come to an end, and in New Hampshire it's time for reigning Division I state champion Exeter High School and Division II state champion Portsmouth to defend their respective state titles.
The Blue Hawks defeated Windham, 2-1 in last year's title game, while Portsmouth shutout Goffstown, 6-0, in the Division II final.
It was Exeter's first state title since 2013, and Portsmouth captured the program's first title in more than 40 years.
More: MacNeil scores both goals as Exeter beats Windham, 2-1 in Division I state championship
Winnacunnet and Dover will join Exeter in the Division I tournament, and Oyster River will join Portsmouth in the Division II bracket.
More: Portsmouth field hockey beats Goffstown, wins first state title since 1982
Tournament pairings in Maine are scheduled to be released Wednesday. York (13-1) will be the top seed in Class B South. Head coach Barb Marois believes the Wildcats will play the winner of Friday's game between Greely and Gray/New Gloucester/North Yarmouth Academy.
More: Natalie Dickson, a field hockey newcomer, shines for first-place York High School
Marshwood went 6-7-1 in the Class A South regular season, good enough for ninth place. Traip Academy went 0-8 in Class C South. Traip athletic director Mike Roberge believes Traip and Telstar will meet in a play-in game at a neutral field.
Here's a look at the Seacoast teams' chances in state tournaments in New Hampshire and Maine:
NH Division I
No. 1 Winnacunnet (14-1-1)
After a good 11-7 campaign last year that resulted in a semifinal loss to Exeter, Winnacunnet went 14-1-1 this season, and is the No. 1 seed.
Head coach Heidi Hand said getting the top-seed doesn't really mean too much to the group.
More: 15 surprise standout players for Seacoast high school field hockey. Who's on the list?
"Our biggest goal was to make the playoffs at the start of the season," Hand said. "A lot of people, I think, underestimated us, and we really wanted to make a statement."
The statement has certainly been made with some highlights along the way as well. Such highlights were handing Exeter and Windham their first losses of the season, and winning three straight overtime games to take over first place.
More: Seacoast high school field hockey 2022: Every team and key players to watch
Basically, the Warriors are legit and possess a good a chance as any team to win the state title.
But Hand has stressed to the team that the playoffs are a whole new season.
"Right now, records don't matter, the season begins now," Hand said. "Really just staying focused is our biggest thing right now. Coming to practice, working hard, getting the job done and doing what we need to do."
Winnacunnet, which received a first-round bye, will host the winner of Thursday's game between No. 8 Keene (7-8-1) and No. 9 Londonderry (7-9) on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Winnacunnet and Exeter would only meet if both reach the championship game.
"We could definitely see (Exeter) again," Hand said.
Winnacunnet had been led this season by senior forwards Abby Wilber and Grace Vander Els, junior defenders Annika Savage and Mazie Snell, and junior forward Jen Frost.
No. 2 Exeter (14-1-1)
The Blue Hawks have a first-round bye, which has its pros and cons, but Exeter head coach Deb Grott said the team is itching to get on the field.
"On one hand, it's an honor to have that ranking way up there, but we just like to play field hockey," Grott said. "So the fact that we have to wait to play again is hard, but we'll take it to our benefit and practice hard."
Exeter will host the winner of Thursday's game between No. 7 Bishop Guertin (10-5-1) and No. 10 Pinkerton (7-9) on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Exeter outscored opponents 63-11, with nine shutouts, tying Windham and Concord for most shutouts in the regular season.
"This was one of those years, that again, we were lucky enough to say that we have a really decent, strong working group," Grott said. "They get along as a team, which is far more important to me than the individual skill on the team."
Grott said the expectations and the approach to the tournament are pretty much mirror images.
"Game by game, day by day," Grott said of the team back on the practice field on Tuesday. "We didn't practice (Monday), I wanted them to rest their little bodies, and then kind of hit the ground hard today through Saturday, and working on specific things we need to work on, no matter who our opponent is."
Exeter is led by senior midfielder Addison MacNeil, senior defender Ainlsey Grant, junior midfielders Izzy and Garen Steiner, sophomore midfielder Elsa Bishop and senior defender Bree Henderson, plus others.
No. 4 Dover (13-3)
Around this time last season, Dover, boasting an 11-7 record, saw its season end in a second-round loss to Bedford, 3-2.
Revenge can be sweet as No. 4 Dover will open this year's tournament on Sunday at home with a quarterfinal matchup against No. 5 Bedford. The game is scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
"Bedford is a very strong program, and they have a lot of really talented players," Dover head coach Sarah Michaud said. "We have already played them once this season on the grass, which I think the grass levels playing field a bit. I always prefer playing them on the grass as oppose to the turf. My girls are excited, and just hoping we can play well and play hard."
Dover had a really good regular season, winning 13 games for one of the best regular seasons since Michaud took over seven seasons ago.
As Michaud said, the Green Wave carry a lot of talent, but it's something more that has taken the team to another level.
"In the beginning of the season, I knew that we had some talent on our team, but it always really depends on how the players come together as a team," Michaud said. "I'm just really proud of the work they put in day in and day out to better ourselves."
Dover won its final seven games of the regular season, starting with a 2-1 win over Bedford in the lone regular-season matchup between the two schools.
The Green Wave outscored its opponents 44-14 this season, with eight shutouts..
Dover senior defenders Molly Goodridge and Elena Gould, senior forward Julia Rowley and junior midfielders Audrey Carter and Rylen Gray, junior goalie Hayley Tosh and sophomores Erin Lynch (forward) and Leyden Churchill (midfielder), among others led the way for the Green Wave.
Division II
No. 3 Portsmouth (11-3)
Can the Clippers make it consecutive years winning the Division II state championship?
"It takes a lot of hard work and dedication," Portsmouth head coach Sara Carpenter said. "For us, coming into the season as defending champions, you've got a target on your back all season long, and the girls as a team collectively rose to the challenge. We've had a couple of bumps along the way, but we're ready to go for technically season number two."
Portsmouth outscored opponents 53-14 through 14 games, scoring at least five goals in eight of its 14 wins. The Clippers' seven shutouts were tied for second in the division with Kennett, only trailing top-seed John Stark's eight.
'Unselfish in everything they do': Portsmouth field hockey quartet back for 2nd title run
Portsmouth will host No. 14 Sanborn on Wednesday at 4:15 p.m. in a first-round game.
The Clippers defeated Sanborn, 6-1, in September.
Wednesday's winner will play either No. 6 Derryfield or No. 11 Goffstown on Saturday in a quarterfinal game.
Look for senior captains Charlotte Marston and Mia Edwards to be two of the top leaders in the second season for Portsmouth.
"I was in the coaches meeting (on Monday), and every Division II coach is like 'yeah I know No. 10 (Edwards) and yeah I know No. 21 (Marston)," Carpenter said.
Portsmouth has a lot of depth with four juniors - Sam Ruel, Sydney Moreau, Maggie Conklin and Audrey Walsh, and senior goalie Samara Buck.
"Moving forward, obviously every single game is going to be a hard one," Carpenter said. "But coming in mentally prepared is number one, but also the idea that if you believe enough in what you can accomplish, hopefully it pays off in the end. That's kind of our attitude we've approached (the tournament) with."
No. 10 Oyster River (7-6-1)
The Bobcats will visit No. 7 Merrimack Valley (9-5) on Wednesday in a first-round game.
Oyster River, which defeated Merrimack Valley, 2-1, in the regular season, has five of losses by two goals or less, including a 4-2 loss at undefeated No. 1 seed John Stark, and a 4-2 loss at No. 3 Portsmouth.
Wednesday's winner will play at No. 2 Souhegan on Saturday in a quarterfinal game.
"We talk a lot about the importance of winning and losing in the regular season, because I think you learn just as much from your losses as you do your wins," Oyster River head coach Anne Golding said. "The lessons that we're learning from these games that are very close in terms of score and competition, what do we need to do now to translate that into finishing."
Golding expects her team to be very competitive in the tournament.
"If the team shows up and everybody is working together like they have been, we should have successful outcomes," Golding said.
Sophomore midfielder Mia Weglarz, sophomore forward Olivia Andersen and senior midfielders Annika Baumgardt and Clio Grondahl are some of Oyster River's leaders.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: NHIAA field hockey: Exeter, Winnacunnet, Portsmouth, Dover contenders
