WINDHAM – It was fitting that a game between the closely matched Windham and Gorham field hockey teams would be close, seeing as the two teams had recently battled to a double overtime tie.
For a while on Saturday, it appeared that the Class A West prelim playoff game between the No. 8 Eagles and the No. 9 Rams at Windham High School would be another overtime affair, but Windham senior captain Molly McVetty got the game-winning goal, her second of the contest, with just 1:37 left on the clock to power Windham to a 3-2 win.
The Eagles now advance to play Scarborough on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
McVetty’s game-winner came when the Eagles sent a long pass into the offensive zone. Windham’s Sarah Skvorak, who had scored the game-tying goal with 12:20 left, got possession and sent a pass to McVetty and McVetty blasted a shot into the far side of the net.
After the game, McVetty said she wasn’t thinking about getting the glory of the game-winner for herself, instead she was focusing on the teamwork that put Windham in a position to win. “I was actually thinking about how well we worked together to bring (the ball) up there,” McVetty said. “I was really happy not to go into overtime. It took everyone as a team and I think together, we made it happen”
“It was an amazing win for us,” Skvorak added. “It was a tough game for us then and we just showed up today.”
Windham’s Marina Davidson said the whole team deserved credit for the win. “I think we all did really well,” Davidson said. “We came out kind of slow, but then we pulled together, we always do. I thought we were going into overtime, but I’m glad we didn’t.”
“I’m really glad we pulled through in the end,” agreed Windham’s Lindsey Bicknell said. “It took all of us.”
Listening to her players after the game, an emotional Eagle coach Christena Dillon said that the win was made all the more special because of how close she is to her players, many of whom she has coached for quite some time. “I’ve been with them forever, they’re kind of like daughters to me,” she said. “They’re amazing young ladies, and they’ve worked really hard to get where they are this season. No one thought we’d even make playoffs, and now we’re going to play Scarborough, and I’m pretty sure we’re going to win. It was only a 2-0 game against Scarborough in the regular season, so if we show up to play, then we can come out on top.”
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