Field Hockey Notebook: Lakeland Makes History with 4th-Straight NYS Title, 7th Overall- Hornet Seniors Bard, Bensaia, First in School History to Earn Four NYS Rings; Defend Till the End
Hornet freshman Dana Bozek scored first, giving three-time reigning champion Lakeland a 1-0 lead with 16:25 remaining in the first half of the NYSPHSAA Class B field hockey championship, and it wasn’t long before Coach Sharon Sarsen’s Hornets (22-1) were crowned four-time successive NYS champions on the turf at Cicero-North High School in Syracuse. The flood gates burst open after Bozek banged the boards and Lakeland poured it on, en route to a 6-0 NYS Class B championship win over Section 5 champion Pittsford Sutherland.
“Once that first one went in, we sort of found our comfort zone,” said Sarsen, the seven-time NYS champion coach.
Lakeland’s comfort zone, which is a distress zone for opposing defenders, produced in succession. In blink-quick fashion, Lakeland junior Gab Celentano followed up Bozek’s tally, netting two goals — within four minutes of Bozek’s score — for a 3-0 lead and the rout was on. Celantano then showed her playmaking prowess by setting up a rip from senior captain Gianna Bensaia, one of three Hornets, including senior captains Kristen Conroy and Rebecca Bard, to become the first trio in school history to win four consecutive NYS titles.
“It feels amazing that we have come this far,” Bensaia exclaimed! “Four state championships is a lot. A lot of people congratulate the team alone, but people forget to congratulate the graduation classes that helped us reach this 4th title. I could not be more proud of my team. Our motto was “defend till the end” and we now can truly say that we defended! Mission accomplished!”
Sarsen said each of the four-time champions had established themselves in program lore.
“Dianna was special the minute she came up,” Sarsen said. “Her energy is what makes her special; that, and her skill sets are amazing. Kristen has been just a smart and consistent player since her sophomore year. She has great tactical awareness, and Rebecca, well, her nickname is the animal. She was the MVP of the Maine-Endwell game and our best defender all season. She’s one of the main reasons why we were able to record 15 shutouts.”
The Hornets took a 4-0 lead into the intermission and left very little doubt about the outcome, having outshot PS 14-0. Senior Abby Murdock erased any lingering doubt when she gave the Hornets a 5-0 lead 11 minutes into the second half and a 6-0 lead just minutes later.
Junior Steph Scala, the hero in Lakeland’s 1-0 semifinal win over Section 4 Maine-Endwell, scored her second in as many days, off a second-half corner. Her semifinal goal was off a rebound from a Celentano shot. Bensaia, Bard and Bozek made All-NYS Tournament team. Conroy was bestowed the sportsmanship award.
“Maine-Endwell was tough,” Sarsen admitted. “Neither team had a plethora of chances, but we settled down and communicated our corners better and we scored on our first one in the second half.”
Defensive-minded standouts like Elizabeth Bell, Sarah Fazio, Felicia Costanzo, Ellie Dineen-Carey, Marissa DiSisto, Kimberly Monteferante, Sarah and Rebecca Bard continued to stand tall before goalie Mairead Hourihan and backup Alex Halpin, posting their 14th and 15th shutouts of the season.
“it was just a matter of time before we figured out where everyone had to go and what their role would be defensively,” Sarsen said. “Once we figured that out, it became tough to score on us. After (Hurricane) Sandy, we became a better team. Maybe they needed a break from me, but when they got back to practice; it was like another team had shown up. We’re in a good place now.”
Coach Sarsen has essentially placed herself atop the list of NYS varsity coaches. Sars’ most recent sectional field hockey championship – her 13th overall — in a 5-0 romp of rival Rye, was impressive, but Lakeland’s seventh state title overall (the others coming 1990, 2003, 2006) and fourth in row etches her name in state lore. Throw in the 10 girls lax sectional championships, and you have what is widely believed to be the most accomplished varsity winner in state history, given the 512 field hockey wins and the 343 girls’ lacrosse triumphs.
“She keeps this going,” said Bensaia. “She holds it all together and has created a dynasty. I don’t think it has hit her yet! She is a very humble coach who loves what she does. She is so important to me and the rest of the team and she deserves every last bit.”
With just seven seniors graduating this season, Sarsen, now in her 31st season, just might get a bit more next year but she’ll always have 2012 to look back on thanks to Emily Power, Elizabeth Bell, Felicia Costanzo, Dana Bozek, Valerie Perkins, Sarah Fazio, Molly Fitzpatrick, Kristen Conroy (C), Gab Celentano, Rebecca Bard (C), Sarah Bard, Ellie Dineen-Carey, Gianna Bensaia (C), Marissa DiSisto, Kimberly Monteferante, Steph Scala, Samantha Pfeifer, Katie Bradbury, Abby Murdock, Mairead Hourihan and Alex Halpin to thank.
“Each championship is special, I can’t possibly rank them,” Sarsen said: Spoken like the humble ruler of the NYS field hockey world.
Ray has 33 years experience covering and photographing local sports in Westchester and Putnam counties, including everything from Little League/Travel Baseball to varsity high school prep sports and collegiate coverage. He has been a sports editor at Examiner Media since its inception in 2007.
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