By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher The players on the Mainland Regional field hockey team may not have a 100 average in history, math or English, but they certainly have mastered chemistry this season. The Mustangs were a pedestrian 3-2 after the first five games of the season, but then ripped off five straight wins to enter the second week of October as one of the top contenders in the Cape-Atlantic League’s rough-and-tumble American Conference. Heading into Tuesday’s game against Atlantic City, the Mustangs were 11-3 overall and 8-3 in the conference. Head coach Jill Hatz knew she had a tough defense in place with goalie Sam Morton and defenders such as Courtney Corson, Nicole Pancari and Megan Stafford, but the emergence of the offense is really what has sparked the Mustangs. Mainland, through its first 10 games, averaged 3.8 goals per game, and during that 5-game winning streak outscored opponents 24-3. “We just kind of had to correct ourselves and work together as a team. I think once we started connecting, everything has been coming together. We’re hoping to keep that going. We have been working hard to get to where we are,” said senior captain Kathryn Hutton. “It’s good the way we have connected because we do have a lot of younger players, but we’ve been working really hard to bond and come together as a team.” 
Senior Megan Stafford has been leading one of the strongest defensive units in the Cape-Atlantic League this season for the Mustangs. (Glory Days Magazine photos/Dave O’Sullivan) “Everyone has been working really hard. The upperclassmen have really been stepping up and trying to help the younger girls gain some experience so they are not so nervous in game situations,” said fellow senior captain Ashley Albright. “We’ve been doing more shooting drills and trying to connect our passes. We’re trying to finish more and get the ball into the cage.” Hatz said she likes the way this year’s team is coming together, but also said the Mainland coaching staff has high expectations for the team every year, so a strong start doesn’t come as a huge surprise. “We’ve been on a nice little streak. We have a very young team so they’ve been trying to figure out how to play together. They’ve been working hard and having fun out there, too. That’s a big component this year, and we’re having a blast,” Hatz said. “If you told me in the beginning of the year that we would start out 8-2, we wouldn’t have been surprised at that. We have a very hard-working group of girls who are dedicated to not only the team, but the sport in general. I’m not surprised, because of how hard they work and how consistent they have been.” Mainland’s only three losses through the first 14 games came against Ocean City and Egg Harbor Township — the Mustangs’ top two adversaries in the CAL American. In each case, Mainland was shut out; 5-0 and 6-0 against Ocean City, and 1-0 against the Eagles. After that loss to EHT, Hatz said the Mustangs have really been focused on finishing around the cage, and the results are evident. They scored eight goals in a win over Vineland, three against a tough Middle Township team, four in a 4-0 win over Atlantic City, three against Absegami and six in another shutout win, over Oakcrest. 
Heading into Tuesday’s action, Nicole Pancari and Mainland were 11-3 and in second place in the Cape-Atlantic League’s American Conference. “We’ve been finishing, and execution on corners is obviously a huge part of the game,” Hatz said. “You can be really skilled, but until you get some confidence and get some flow going, I always tell my girls we have to get that first goal. Once you get that, things start falling into place.” The schedule will continue to get tougher as the Mustangs begin to play some of their conference rivals for the second time. Heading into the second week of October, Mainland had a daunting week of facing Ocean City, EHT and Millville. “The second half of the season is always tough. It’s more mental than the first half because teams start getting tired, and there are a lot of teams that are battling neck-and-neck,” Hatz said. “A lot of these games can go either way. Just because you beat a team the first time, doesn’t mean you will beat them the second time. But that’s what I like about our conference. You go into every game not knowing what’s going to happen.” Still, Hatz and the Mustangs like the kind of field hockey they were playing heading into October, and will need to keep up that kind of intensity down the stretch as they look to compete not only in the conference, but in the South Jersey Group 3 state playoffs. “We feel good. We’ve been playing really good hockey. We don’t feel like we’ve been playing the best hockey we can play yet, but you’re not supposed to until you hit the playoffs anyway, so we feel like we are in a good spot. We have some good momentum going,” Hatz said. “We got a nice little break with the weather and that gave them some much-needed rest. They enjoyed it, but we’re ready to get back into it.” “We’re just trying to keep our heads high and work hard. We have to stay focused and try to get better from here on out,” Albright said. “Our expectations are always high. I think we are where we should be.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays [adsense]
Field hockey: Mainland Regional mastering on-field chemistry, putting together solid season
