Quakers score two goals in third period, shut out Red Raiders in upset at Carey Stadium
OCEAN CITY — In a defensive battle between two of the top field hockey programs in South Jersey Group III, Moorestown High School was better for 2 minutes, securing the win over Ocean City High School with two goals in the third period Tuesday, Nov. 9, at Carey Stadium.
The Red Raiders suffered a season-ending loss to the visiting Quakers in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group III final. Moorestown upset Ocean City with third-period goals by senior midfielder Ava Cickavage at 6:46 assisted by junior Ava Tilger and a solo effort by freshman forward Adelae Chierici at 4:45 on a breakaway.
Ocean City and Moorestown know each other well, having battled it out in the playoffs for decades. They played a scoreless first half in which the home team had multiple chances off corners but no goal to show for it.
Senior forward Olivia Vanesko said the Red Raiders were pleased with the way the first half went, despite not getting on the board.
“We were pretty happy with how we played in the first half. We didn’t get a goal but they didn’t either, so that was obviously a good outlook on it,” she said. “They played a great game. Moorestown’s always a great competitor so to hold them zero-zero at halftime was a good way to go into the second half.”
Moorestown came out from halftime and took control of the game, never letting up.
Head coach Ali Collins said scoring the first goal was extremely important.
“We’ve been putting a lot of time and effort into finishing goal scoring and corners and I thought that both Ava Cickavage and Ava Tilger were both really smart and it was a great shot, beautiful shot,” she said.
“For us, it was what we needed to slow down a little bit and play with a sense of urgency that was no longer frazzled or panicked, it was now that confident sense of urgency and then we came back and put one in,” Collins said.
Ocean City head coach Kelsey Burke agreed the first goal set the tone for the rest of the game.
“It’s unfortunate that we didn’t capitalize on the opportunities that we had, then they scored two goals in 2 minutes. A 60-minute game, you see a result from 2 minutes of it,” Burke said.
The Red Raiders had six corners and four shots on goal in the first half to the Quakers’ three and three, but just one more corner and shot on goal the rest of the way. Moorestown finished the game with six corners and nine shots on goal.
Ocean City had no answer for the Quakers’ stout defense and goalie Catherine Parker, who turned away all four shots on goal.
“They’re a great team with great players that are well-coached.
Catherine Parker stood strong in goal and our defense, our four backs, were outstanding,” Collins said.
Moorestown took the road less traveled to get to the playoffs, twice losing two in a row and five of the final eight.
“It feels incredible. I am so proud of this team. We’ve come a long way. It has been an absolute battle. It has been a heck of a season, just total ups and downs at every turn and these girls never gave up, they never lost hope and we were battle-tested and ready to go today,” Collins said.
Moorestown (13-6-1), the second seed in the tournament, advanced to play North Jersey winner North Hunterdon for the state title.
Parker made 4 saves while Ocean City goalie Taryn Dolka made 5 on 7 shots on goal.
Top-seeded Ocean City finished its season 20-3.
“There’s not better program to test yourself against, to measure yourself against than Ocean City and it’s a great rivalry and proud of my team for coming out on top today,” Collins.
Burke said the girls are disappointed but she told them to be proud of what they accomplished.
“We graduated some serious studs last year and I think a lot of people wrote us off, like those would be too big of holes to fill, and they were big holes to fill but a variety of people stepped up and had breakout years and that’s why we are where we are,” Burke said.
Vanesko said she was proud of the effort.
“We were doubted all season. We graduated a huge class with a lot of skill, so we made it a lot further than a lot of people thought we would,” Vanesko said. “If we came out with nothing, we’re still proud of that.”
She said she knows the team will continue to be successful after she’s gone.
“Our seniors are always leaving the program with a great foundation. The juniors and sophomores, we always have strong players coming in no matter what level they are and they always get better over the years learning from the seniors, learning from the juniors. Everyone’s a leader for each other so it really keeps the momentum going for all levels,” Vanesko said.