Cosmos battle to scoreless overtime tie

A victory is always better than a tie, but given the circumstances, Springfield’s 0-0 overtime deadlock with Fair Haven Saturday evening was definitely on the plus side. Just four days earlier, FH had handed the Cosmos a 2-1 loss.

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Cosmos battle to scoreless overtime tie By TIM TAYLOR | Oct 11, 2015 Photo by: Tim Taylor Springfield seniors Alisha Dykes (left) and Kelsey Gould run through a gauntlet of field hockey sticks honoring them following their final home game for the Cosmos Saturday evening. u Springfield’s Katie Masure clears the ball against Fair Haven. (Photo by: Tim Taylor) Enlarge... SPRINGFIELD — A victory is always better than a tie, but given the circumstances, Springfield’s 0-0 overtime deadlock with Fair Haven Saturday evening was definitely on the plus side. Just four days earlier, FH had handed the Cosmos a 2-1 loss. This time, home-standing Springfield dueled the Slaters in a battle that was about as evenly-played as it can be with neither team finding that magic hole into the cage. “They put in a lot of work,” said Springfield co-head coach Kelley Ranado. “They had a lot of really good passes. We’re here tonight for our seniors and I know they tried their hearts out for them. I couldn’t be prouder. I wish we could finish, but I’ll take a tie.” Both teams had their opportunities, especially late in each period, but both defense were up to task. With 1:17 remaining in the first half, the Cosmos worked the ball in close, but Emilia Battista’s shot hit the right post. Springfield would again challenge in the final 10 seconds of the half but the FH goalkeeper came up with a big kick save. The Slaters looked primed to score with 3:40 left in regulation, but Cosmos keeper Aunna Parker kicked the ball out of bounds. The Fair Haven bench would erupt with cheers at 1:35 when the players thought their team had scored a goal, but a dangerous hit was whistled on the play. Fair Haven missed another opportunity to score four minutes into overtime with a wide shot. Then, Springfield would get a penalty corner opportunity with 38 ticks on the clock, but couldn’t convert it into a shot. The Slaters could have taken a lead early in the second half when they worked the ball in close less than four minutes in, but missed wide left. It was the final home game for seniors Alisha Dykes and Kelsey Gould — and an emotional night for the pair. “I feel really heartbroken because I won’t be able to play with them anymore,” said Dykes, “but I know they’ll go far [next year]. “I don’t feel like this is my last home game with this team,” said Gould. “I feel like I’m still going to be playing with them next year. It feels good to be playing them, but at the same time it’s really sad because I feel like should have another season with them but I don’t.” The tie was the third this season for Springfield, which is now 4-5-3. That’s not a shabby showing considering the Cosmos started the season with three straight losses. “I think at first there wasn’t a lot of dedication … but I think as our team got closer and talked more about problems and stuff we worked through it better,” said Gould “and everybody just tried a lot harder and gave it their best and that resulted in a lot closer games and more wins.” “We had a good string right in the middle [of the season],” said Springfield co-head coach Lyndsie Perkins. “We had lost to them last week, which we were a little bummed about, and then tying Brattleboro last Thursday, which is good, and a tie tonight, which will get us some points.” The Cosmos visit Burr & Burton on Thursday.