There was never any doubt in Patti Nicholson’s mind that her club was going to come out on top. The New Egypt High School field hockey coach was confident the Lady Warriors’ offense would eventually find a way to break through and snap a scoreless tie.
CHRIS KELLY staff New Egypt High School senior Laura Sandford drives past Chelsea Norton of Moorestown Friends School during an NJSIAA Central Jersey Group I state sectional tournament game Nov. 7 in Plumsted. New Egypt won 2-0 and advanced in postseason action. “We had plenty of opportunities, but we weren’t cashing in,” Nicholson said. “We played as well as a team could play, but putting the ball in the back of the cage wasn’t happening. We stayed poised and continued to pressure their defense. We knew eventually we would score.”
Indeed, Stephanie Partyka scored the game’s only goal to lift New Egypt to a dramatic 1-0 win over Gloucester City on Monday in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Central Jersey Central Jersey state sectional championship game.
Partyka blasted a shot from the top of the circle that managed to find its way past Gloucester City goalie Brittany Dolson with 11:29 to play. Karly Ossowski and Lauren Siegelski assisted on the game-winning goal.
“There was a couple of passes and then Stephanie let one go from the top of the circle,” Nicholson said. “It was really quite a shot. Stephanie has very good stick skills and she was able to get a lot of pace on the shot.”
New Egypt is scheduled to square off against South Jersey Group I champion Glassboro in an NJSIAA Group I semifinal Thursday night (Nov. 13) at Bishop Eustace Preparatory School, Pennsauken. New Egypt and Glassboro have never met and Nicholson expects a battle.
“When you get to this point in the playoffs, all the teams that you will be facing are going to be very competitive,” Nicholson said. “There aren’t going to be any easy ones. We need to play our game and remain with a high-intensity level.”
The game will be played under the lights and on artificial turf, two elements Nicholson said her players are excited about.
“It’s a nice opportunity for the kids,” Nicholson said. “We’re looking forward to it. The turf is going to play a lot quicker. It is going to change the game a bit. I think we are going to be fine with the change of surface.”
Against Gloucester City in the Central Jersey Group I final, New Egypt dominated at the offensive end. The Lady Warriors outshot their opponent by a 17 to 1 margin. In addition, New Egypt held the upper hand in penalty corners as well, registering 23 to Gloucester City’s one.
“We were sharp,” Nicholson said. “We only let the ball inside our circle once. When you are able to control play like that, your chances of coming out on top are pretty good.”
The win improved New Egypt’s overall mark to 17-1-3. In the final weeks of the regular season, the Lady Warriors registered victories over a number of high-profile programs. Wins over Holy Cross and Collingswood along with a tie against Moorestown prepared this team, Nicholson said, for success in the postseason.
“We like putting teams like that on our regular-season schedule,” Nicholson said. “It’s only going to make you better. Notching a pair of wins over Collingswood and Holy Cross says something about how hard our girls worked this year.”
New Egypt has won four NJSIAA sectional championships in the past seven years, but Nicholson says the thrill of winning the crown never gets old. She says the balance and parity among players on this year’s team is what makes her club so special.
“We have a lot of talented kids on this team,” Nicholson said, “but our balance and depth is really the key. We may not have that one superstar some of the other teams have, but make no mistake, we have a lot of kids who are just very good athletes who love to compete.”