Walpole rallies to beat Plymouth North in field hockey

Walpole field hockey teams generally don’t get a lot of practice playing from behind, but that’s where the unbeaten Porkers found themselves in the second half of Monday’s Division 1 South quarterfinal with Plymouth North.

Stunned by two goals in the span of a minute by Jeff Yang, third-seeded Walpole rallied behind the sophomore duo of Caroline Whelan and Jess Tosone for a 3-2 win over the No. 6 Eagles and a berth in the semis against No. 7 Notre Dame Academy.

“We were down two goals to Franklin last year, so we remembered how we stayed composed and we came back and won, so we tried to follow the same pattern,” said Walpole senior captain Sydney Scales.

Whelan struck for the equalizer with 17:10 remaining, depositing a cross from the middle of the circle for her second goal of the game. Moments later, it looked like she had the go-ahead score, but it was waved off for having touched the ball with her foot.

But with just over nine minutes to play, Tosone intercepted a clear attempt in the circle and flicked the game-winner inside the right post.

“This is one of the best groups I’ve coached,” said Walpole coach Jen Quinn. “They pulled themselves together and regrouped, I didn’t have to say anything. They stayed composed and did what they needed to do.”

It took the Porkers just 36 seconds to get on the board as Scales carried into the circle and drew a penalty corner, and Whelan tipped home a Natalie Griffin shot for a 1-0 lead. But the Eagles were a different team a few minutes later when they inserted two male players off the bench, giving them three in the lineup, and the visitors began to carry the play.

Plymouth North’s best chance of the first half came when it earned a penalty stroke 10 minutes in. Goalie Gigi Anello stopped the first attempt by Maggie Brock with her stick, but Brock was awarded another chance as her shot came before the whistle. Anello denied that as well, this time with the blocker.

“I turned around and collected myself and knew what I had to do, and I didn’t want to let a team with boys win,” said Anello. “I looked at her eyes and I could see where she was going.”

But Yang solved her twice early in the second half, firing one in on a corner to tie it and giving the Eagles the 2-1 lead with a wicked reverse stick, putting the Porkers in the rare trailing position.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2qhhsa5