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A TOUGH, BUT VALIANT ENDING
Group AAA field hockey quarterfinals
Date published: 11/14/2008
BY JIM McCONNELL VIRGINIA BEACH --They lunged, sprawled and dove to frustrate their opponents' numerous scoring opportunities. They used their bulky, waterlogged leg pads to deny several low, hard shots and keep them out of the back of the net.Despite driving rain that at times turned the artificial turf fields at the U.S. Field Hockey National Training Center into big, green lakes, North Stafford's Ashley Scroggin and Mountain View's Sabrina Hill stood tall in goal against two of the best high school teams in Virginia. On a day when only perfection would've been enough, their terrific performances still couldn't carry their teams into the Group AAA state semifinals. Two-time defending state champion Frank Cox outshot North Stafford 28-1, but couldn't get the ball past Scroggin until the final two minutes of the first half. Cara Witte finished with a hat trick as the Falcons won 3-0 and advanced to face Westfield today at 1 p.m. Amy Abernathy's first-half goal was the only one Princess Anne would get against Hill, but it was all the Cavaliers needed to secure a 1-0 victory that sent them into today's 3 p.m. semifinal matchup with Lake Braddock. "I really thought we were going to score," said Hill, who finished with 10 saves and kept Mountain View in the game until its offense began to click in the second half. "We started breaking them down and kept getting closer to the goal. Another 10 seconds and we would've had it." Mountain View (20-3) was obviously affected by the wind and driving rain, which largely nullified the Wildcats' most dangerous weapon--their speed--and prevented either team from putting together much of a cohesive offense. With the field unable to drain quickly enough to prevent standing water, the game finally was suspended with 5:16 left in the first half. "It was a little late on that call," Mountain View coach Pattie Sullivan said. "It wasn't good for either team because [the weather] takes you out of your game. You can't help but think about it when the rain is hitting you in the face." When play resumed after a 35-minute delay, Mountain View looked like a different team. The Wildcats earned their first corner, then Heather Hartman sent teammate Alexis Gay in on a breakaway that Princess Anne's defense scrambled to deny.
Date published: 11/14/2008
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