Edison field hockey tops Newport Harbor for third place in TOC
Rain had begun to pour on the turf just before the fourth quarter of a scoreless affair between the Edison and Newport Harbor field hockey teams on Saturday afternoon at Davidson Field.
It added to an intense environment in a sport that rarely leaves much margin for error at the top of the competition. For Edison and Newport Harbor, each coming off one-goal defeats in the semifinals of the Los Angeles Field Hockey Assn. Tournament of Champions, this was no exception.
Maci Mathwig provided the lone goal midway through the final frame of regulation, giving the Chargers a 1-0 win over the host Sailors in the third-place game.
The goal came on a short-corner opportunity, Sophia LaCapria delivering the pass as the injector. The right-handed Mathwig fired a slapshot from her off-wing side and into the cage, leaving the Chargers six minutes to defend the shutout and earn the victory.
“It was a lot of excitement because we needed to put one in to not go into overtime,” said Mathwig, who leaped with both hands in the air in reaction to the goal. “We were all thinking overtime would happen, or they would get one first.”
The Sailors earned a 3-0 win over rival Huntington Beach on Tuesday night, while Edison beat Marina 2-0.
Edison coach Rebecca Antongiorgi described the feeling as one of “relief.”
“I was like, ‘Finally,’” Antongiorgi said. “We had tons of chances, so many ones that went wide in that first quarter. Their goalie had a lot of saves.”
Madison Brown had worked the ball toward the goalmouth two minutes before the scoring strike, securing a penalty stroke for the Chargers. Ashley Brown took the shot, sending it wide right of the goal.
Grace McClung, Elliana Emerson and Peyton Makros helped prevent the Sailors from getting a shot on goal as they chased the equalizer, with Hayven Medeiros-Schomberg retreating in the midfield to assist defensively.
Fallon Auger and Tatum Trout split the goaltending duties in securing the shutout.
Edison (12-4-4) won the Sunset League South title, then opened the postseason tournament with a 2-0 win over Marina, before falling to La Verne Bonita 1-0 with a trip to the final on the line.
“It’s really hard,” Antongiorgi said of bouncing back from a loss in the semifinals. “Your team’s so deflated, and you have 48 hours to get them up for another game, but you want them to finish on a high note. It’s been a while since we’ve been here.
“This is the first time we won league in like five years, and it had been a while since we made it to this game, so I was really happy that they could end it on a high note, even if it wasn’t the first-place game.”
Newport Harbor (11-5-2) had a goal waved off in the opening moments of the fourth quarter, and momentum appeared to carry over. Shortly thereafter, Bridget Taketa sent a long-distance shot in on goal. Trout made the save and was equal to the task on the rebound bid by Sienna Schneider.
Lauren Gregory made six saves in the first half for Newport Harbor.
“Our road here, we played Huntington [Beach], Harvard-[Westlake], and then ended up playing Edison,” Newport Harbor coach Amanda Boyer said. “I think that all three of those teams all have really strong programs. We have lots of history with each team, and they all played really great games.”
La Verne Bonita beat Harvard-Westlake 1-0 in the championship game that followed.
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.
