WATERVILLE — In field hockey, you’ll see all kinds of different strategies on penalty corners, and so many things can go wrong before you get a shot.
In the first half of Saturday afternoon’s Eastern A semifinal against Mt. Ararat, Skowhegan didn’t have any of those problems. The Indians had 11 corners before halftime, and got shots on every one. The offense was clicking, and Skowhegan rolled to an 11-0 victory at Colby College.
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“Some days, it comes better than others,” Skowhegan coach Paula Doughty said. “I’m lucky that I have five people who can shoot.”
No. 1 Skowhegan (16-0-0) will face No. 2 Messalonskee in the regional final Tuesday at the Weatherbee Complex in Hampden at a time to be determined. Mt. Ararat, the fifth seed, ends at 11-5-0 after winning two games last fall.
Skowhegan earned its first penalty corner just 23 seconds into the game. At 1:07, the Indians scored on their second corner as Allison Lancaster sent home a long shot to make it 1-0.
Makaela Michonski finished with four goals and three assists for Skowhegan, while Lancaster, Renee Wright, and Rylie Blanchet each scored two goals. Sarah Finnemore added a goal and two assists, and Mikayla Toth picked up an assist when Blanchet tipped in her shot to put the Indians up 4-0 with 9:13 left in the half.
Michonski may have had the prettiest goal of the day. On that play, Finnemore took the initial shot on a penalty corner and Mt. Ararat’s Taylor Pare made the save. Michonski gathered the rebound in front, and almost in slow-motion, flipped the ball around Pare and into the narrow opening between Pare and the right post.
Pare had 25 saves, and did well in the cage despite the score. Doughty has said many times how much her players love playing on turf, and this was more evidence to what the Indians can do on a rug.
“We work a lot on stickwork, and we work a lot on fundamentals,” Doughty said. “When you get on grass, you can’t execute. It’s a big obstacle. But when you get on turf, the game — when it’s played well — to me, it’s like a symphony.”
Matt DiFilippo — 861-9243
mdifilippo@centralmaine.com
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