The Clippers kicked off their 2015 in style on Wednesday, Sept. 2, walloping the visiting Lakers 6-0 on goals by four different girls, including two apiece from Abby McDowell and Eliza Lunt. That’s a 1-0 start on the year for Yarmouth, and a rush of good vibes they hope to carry forward into coming battles.

“We saw some great field hockey in this first game,” said Yarmouth head coach Mandy Lewis. “We talked in our pre-game about playing hard from the first whistle. I think we saw that. We put two goals in in the first two minutes, and that just continued our momentum.”

Lake Region begins the autumn campaign at 0-1, a misstep they mean to soon put behind them.

“How captains react to games and such,” said Lakers head coach Pauline Webb, “the team follows; so, how coaches react to games, the team will follow. My assistant and I are ready to move on. We’re going to use this as a learning experience, a stepping stone to where we want to be, coming into the season.”

The Clippers’ goals came three in the first half and three in the second. McDowell hashed two in quick succession in the very early going – at 28:37 and 27:28, to be precise – before the Lakers awakened a little and began pushing back. Lake Region managed to even out the action for a lengthy stretch, quieting Yarmouth and driving much of the play back toward midfield.

Lunt did notch her first at 20:31, but beyond that, the Lakers stood strong – at least, that is, until the start of the second half, when Lunt needed just under three minutes to strike once more for 4-0. The point came on one of the game’s few corners.

“We’ve been working on our passing game,” said Lewis, “and we really saw some success with that today.”

Two minutes later, Ally MacLeod added the Clippers’ fifth, prompting Lake Region to again step up their aggression. They silenced Yarmouth for another long while, but failed to convert any of their own handful of opportunities. When the Lakers managed to penetrate the Clippers’ defense, netminder Tori Messina proved impenetrable.

“Tori is a senior captain; she’s been our varsity goalie for three years,” said Lewis. “We see great work from her. She works hard at practice, and even when she doesn’t see a lot of play, she keeps herself engaged, and focused, and is ready when the attack comes.”

Emilie Martin earned Yarmouth’s final goal, the 6-0 game-clincher, with 15:27 to play. Breanna Morrill had two assists in the course of the afternoon, and Maggie Gunville and Sophie McGrath each contributed one.

“It’s exciting to see the different goal-scorers each game,” said Lewis. “In pre-season, we had three scrimmages, and in each scrimmage, different players had the goals. It’s good to spread that around; we have lots of players on our forward attack that are hungry for the goals.”

Despite Yarmouth’s even offensive split, three tallies in the first half and three in the second, Webb was much more satisfied with her Lakers’ play in the latter 30 minutes.

“The whole first half was a little too flat for me,” she said. “I liked the second half better. I made a couple position changes, they had a little break, had a little water, and we tried to help [them] believe in themselves – that if [Yarmouth] could score three goals in one half, so could we.

“We don’t practice on turf, so it’s a much different game,” said Webb. “Once the kids realized they could run with [Yarmouth] – even though we have small numbers and were kind of holding back at first, feeling like ‘I’ve got to run the whole game’ – we started feeling more comfortable with the flow of the game, how fast the ball was rolling, and believing we could play with them.”

Webb had high praise for a pair of her players: “My center-mid, Olivia Deschenes, definitely was working hard. I think she was working too hard, trying to make up for some of the other players. And my center-forward, Liz Cole, who I ended up moving back as a middie, the second half, did a good job no matter where I put her today.”

The Clippers’ follow-up bout was also at home, versus Gray-New Gloucester on Friday the 4th, held after the Tri-Town Weekly’s deadline. Lake Region’s, on the other hand, was another road game, this one at Greely, also on that Friday.

Laker Hannah Record challenges – and halts – Yarmouth’s Emilie Martin.Laker Paige Davis and Clipper Taylor Robison race for a ball headed out of bounds.Lake Region’s Hailey Parsons pursues Emilie Martin of Yarmouth, scurrying to move the ball upfield unimpeded.Yarmouth’s Tessa Houston and Lake Region’s Liz Cole clash over a bouncing ball on Wednesday.Laker Olivia Deschenes collides in almost bodycheck fashion with Yarmouth’s Lilly Kuhn on Thursday.Yarmouth’s Eliza Lunt interrupts Molly Christensen’s progress upfield for the Lakers.Lake Region’s Desiree Berry skirts a Clippers defender on her way upfield at Yarmouth on Wednesday.A crowd of Lakers, including Paige Davis (center), apply heavy pressure to the Clippers’ defense, among them Annalise Richards (30) and goalie Eve Roth (99), in a valiant, dying-breath effort to get on the board. Yarmouth blanked Lake Region 6-0.

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