WINDSOR — Four quarters and a 10-minute seven-on-seven sudden-death overtime weren’t enough to decide a winner in a competitive VPA field hockey clash between Windsor High and Brattleboro High that ended in a 1-1 draw at McLeay-Royce Field on Wednesday afternoon.
Grace Blanchard netted the Yellow Jackets’ lone goal, while Audrey McFarland added an assist. Payshence Coburn had eight saves on the afternoon.
“I think ultimately we always want to come out with a win, even in overtime,” Windsor head coach Blake Holden said.
“It’s better than a loss, of course. I think that each quarter we fought harder and harder; we dominated that seven-v-seven, had a lot of opportunity. It was unfortunate; their goalie did come up with a few good saves. It was a bummer; we just couldn’t finish today.”
Each squad certainly had its chances over the course of the game, with the Jacks earning 12 penalty corners and putting 12 shots on goal. The Bears had just four penalty corners but got eight shots on net.
“Ultimately, the girls, they played really hard; they played a whole game,” Holden said, noting that the contest became intense as the time went on.
Despite early chances from both teams, scoring didn’t start until the third quarter. Windsor struck first.
The Jacks drew a penalty corner early in the frame, which Blanchard sent in to McFarland at the top of the shooting circle. McFarland then returned the ball to Blanchard out in front, and she found the back of the net with 8:39 remaining to give Windsor a 1-0 lead.
The Division III Jacks’ lead was short-lived, however, as the D-II Bears (0-3-2) answered about four minutes later. Lizzy LaClair made a run, set up by a nice flip pass from Mary Cady, and beat Coburn to tie the contest.
The Jacks battled to break the tie in the fourth quarter and especially in overtime, with strong possession and shots on goal, but couldn’t get another ball past Bears netminder Lily Bogert.
Windsor (0-2-1) is still searching for its first win, but its head coach is encouraged by what she’s seen from her young team. Each loss has come by just one goal.
“We have only, I think, five girls who have ever really stepped foot on a varsity field and gotten significant numbers, so we’re playing a lot with freshmen, sophomores,” Holden said. “We graduated a big class, so even our juniors this year haven’t seen a lot of varsity time.
“To be losing by one goal with this young of a team and inexperienced of a team is a great feat. Of course, we want the win, but we’re coming a long way for having freshmen and sophomores, and only five true varsity returning players.”
Up next for the Jacks is a home bout with Fair Haven on Friday at 4 p.m.
