Slaters, Cosmos still too close to call

Fair Haven’s Jillian Stuart was likely expressing the feelings of every one of her field hockey teammates as the lights on the scoreboard told the story of a 1-1 tie with Springfield. "Can’t we play another overtime?" Stuart said.

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Slaters, Cosmos still too close to call Rutland Herald | October 13, 2017 BY TOM HALEY STAFF WRITER Springfield’s Sofia Gulick (11) challenges Fair Haven’s Adriana Dalto (7) for control of the ball during their matchup on Thursday at Fair Haven Union High School. PHOTO BY JON OLENDER Springfield’s Sofia Gulick (11) challenges Fair Haven’s Adriana Dalto (7) for control of the ball during their matchup on Thursday at Fair Haven Union High School. PHOTO BY JON OLENDER FAIR HAVEN — Fair Haven’s Jillian Stuart was likely expressing the feelings of every one of her field hockey teammates as the lights on the scoreboard told the story of a 1-1 tie with Springfield. “Can’t we play another overtime?” Stuart said. It’s a pretty good bet players on both teams would have preferred staying and playing. Fair Haven and the Cosmos are both starved for a win. A tie? They have already had that— a 2-2 deadlock with one another back on Sept. 16. But Springfield (0-8-1) and Fair Haven (0-11-1) were left to battle for that elusive first victory on another day. The Slaters had to feel good about finally securing that win when Anna Breslen scored just 5:01 into the game on an assist from Adriana Dalto. But the Cosmos dominated the rest of the half and scored with 5:55 remaining on a goal by Sofia Gulick off a scramble in front of the goal. The Cosmos pretty much owned the half as suggested by the 7-1 edge they had in penalty corners during the 30 minutes. But the second half was a different story, with the Slaters carrying the play much of the time. The Cosmos pushed the attack in the opening minutes, but Fair Haven’s Leah Gannon repelled them with a nice defensive play. The Slaters began to assert themselves on offense. Dalto was the catalyst for much of it with her frequent pushes into the circle. Another time, Theresa Culpo unloaded a shot off a corner for the Slaters and Breslen threatened to come up with her second goal on a few occasions. Midway through the second half, Dalto had a hard shot on goalie Anna Church and Culpo nearly tucked in the rebound. Chloe Brown came close to scoring for the Cosmos but Slater goalie Jordyn Howard made a nice save. “Jordyn is coming along considering she only got about five minutes in the varsity goal last year,” Fair Haven coach Jen Clement said of her sophomore. Both teams had great chances and the Slaters had one just before the final horn of regulation play, a screamer off Dalto’s stick. The 10-minute overtime, featuring plenty of open space with the 7-on-7 format, produced thrills and near misses. The teams took turns streaking up the field and both benches screamed every time somebody made a threatening run. When it was over, Clement praised the effort of Dalto, Breslen and Kerah Book. Paige Congdon did a nice job taking the corners for the Cosmos and deftly set up her teammates, particularly in the first half when Springfield had seven of its nine corners. The statistics were nearly as even as the score. Corners were even at nine and the Cosmos outshot the Slaters 13-12. When you have come out on the wrong side of the scoreboard every time out, a tie does not do a lot for the spirit. “They want to win bad,” Clement said. They will get another chance on Tuesday under the temporary lights at Otter Valley at 7 p.m. The Cosmos don’t have to wait as long. They are at Mount Anthony today.