Carly Hanin scores 4 times, but senior Brooke Stell’s first-ever varsity goal steals show
OCEAN CITY – Senior Carly Hanin racked up four goals as the Red Raiders led 10-0 in the third quarter as the top-seeded Ocean City High School field hockey team was rolling over No. 16 seed Timber Creek Wednesday afternoon in the first round of the Group III South Jersey sectionals.
Her play was outstanding, but it was the 11th goal of the game that got all the attention.
Hanin was among the players – varsity, JV and freshmen – cheering wildly from the sidelines with just under 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter as Brooke Stell scored from directly in front of the Timber Creek goal.
By that point in the game, nearly the entire starting squad had been pulled and coach Kelsey Burke had substituted players from the bench. Stell was one of those players.
She looked surprised when the referee signaled the score, then jumped into the air in joy as her teammates on the field swarmed her and the sidelines erupted.
Stell, a senior, had never scored a varsity goal before.
“It was my first varsity goal and I loved it, every second of it,” Stell said, still beaming after the game. “My teammates were cheering for me and it was so beautiful. I actually shed a tear because it was a touching moment. I felt like I was invincible.”
As the final buzzer sounded, all of the players swarmed onto the field and as they came off, Stell was in the middle of it, being carried off the field by teammate Olivia Vanesko as the rest of the team celebrated around her.
“It felt amazing. I love Liv, she’s always been there for me,” Stell said. “We’ve been friends since we were little. And she is my role model in field hockey so it was great having her carry me off the field.”
“She is loved by so many people,” coach Burke said of Stell, “and she embodies what our program is about, being committed, working hard, having a good attitude so it was really important for us to get her that goal today.”
She was set up by the lone starter on the field, Camryn Flynn, who kept sending centering passes across the goal front during penalty corners. Flynn herself scored the 10th goal of the game toward the end of the third quarter and had another assist early.
Hanin is the one who opened the scoring 27 seconds into the game, setting the tone in which the ball rarely made it past midfield and the Ocean City goaltender was never tested.
Tricia Nicolette scored the first of her two goals with 8:00 left in the first quarter, assisted by Hanin, and three minutes later Racheli Levy-Smith scored on an assist by Julia Neff.
Hanin got her second goal with just over a minute left in the first quarter.
The Red Raiders added three more goals in the second quarter, the first by Vanesko with 8:01 left, on an assist by Brooke Hanley, the next less than 30 seconds later by Hanin, unassisted, and then at the 2:43 mark, Hanin got her fourth goal on an assist by Andi Helphenstine.
Neff scored unassisted 80 seconds in the third quarter, followed by Nicoletti, assisted by Hanin. Then it was Flynn’s turn at the 5:58 mark of the quarter.
Ocean City put 30 shots on the Timber Creek goal.
Hanin said it was the first time she scored four goals in a single game.
“I’ve had a hat trick a couple times, but (four goals) never happened before. It feels pretty good. It makes me feel good about myself. I do it for my team,” she said.
“Carly played great day,” Burke said. “She had a few great days of practice as well. It seems like she lit a firecracker. I’m very happy to see it. Definitely a good time of year to be peaking.”
Hanin believes her team is well set for a run in the sections.
“I think we’re honestly doing really good. We were starting off slow in the games and were progressively getting better, not doing as well we wanted the whole game, but now we click together really well,” she said. “I think we’re communicating really well on the field … and we have really gelled as a team.”
To keep the momentum going, she said, “I think we need to have the same energy every single day at practice, going into each game with the same mentality. No thinking forward. It’s just another day. Another game. Another practice.”
“I think the energy has been good in practice and in games,” Burke said of her team. “That’s awesome. That’s where we need to be. We’re focusing on one day at a time throughout the tournament.”
Ocean City was hosting No. 9 Allentown Tuesday afternoon in the quarterfinals after the Sentinel sports section went to press. The semifinals are Friday and the finals are set for Tuesday, Nov. 9.
Moorestown is the No. 2 seed on the other side of the bracket.
Ocean City is 18-2 on the season. The team’s only loss came in overtime to Egg Harbor Township. When the two teams met again, Ocean City won in overtime. The only other loss was a non-conference game with Haddonfield.
Mainland falls in field hockey sectionals
The Mainland Mustangs field hockey team lost 1-0 Wednesday in the first round of the Group III South Jersey section.
The No. 10 Mustangs lost to no. 7 Toms River South, 1-0, on a fourth-quarter goal with just over 2 minutes remaining.
Mainland finished the season with a 10-10-1 record.
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
