By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher OCEAN CITY — Winning South Jersey championships is nothing new to the Ocean City High School field hockey team. Or is it? The top-seeded Red Raiders took down No. 2 Cumberland Regional 5-0 on Friday afternoon to win their 13th sectional title in school history. However, the win marked the first time Ocean City had strung together four straight championships. “For the seniors, this is our fourth South Jersey championship, which is some history — we’ve never gotten four in a row before,” said captain Maria Farnan, who led the way by scoring three first-half goals. “So this is an amazing thing to be a part of. I’m so happy I’m able to experience this with a great bunch of teammates.” “It’s the best feeling ever. Winning one of these championships is amazing,” said fellow senior captain Jordan Allegretto. “I was so happy with our play. Right from the start we flowed down the field, and once we got into the circle we drew a lot of corners, and we scored off those corners. It was an amazing feeling to come out strong like that. We wanted to get them early. That just makes the whole game better and helps us keep our intensity up.” 
Maria Farnan, right, hugs Britney Stein after Ocean City beat Cumberland Regional 5-0 on Friday to win its fourth straight South Jersey Group 3 championship. (Glory Days Magazine photo/Dave O’Sullivan) It didn’t take long for Ocean City (22-1) to take control over the Colts (17-3-1), champions of the Tri-County Conference’s Diamond division. Farnan scored less than five minutes into the game, then Allegretto scored off a pass from Rialee Allen on a corner play to make it 2-0. Ocean City took command midway through the first half when Farnan deflected a shot by Julia Herrington to push the lead to 3-0. Farnan added her third goal of the game with less than a minute remaining in the first half, deflecting a shot by Herrington again to make it 4-0. The play was set up by a great pass to the middle by Alexis Paone. Allen drove home a shot from just inside the circle early in the second half to make it 5-0, and Ocean City’s defense did the rest. “We just tried to focus on ourselves. We knew they were going to be a tough team and would come out tough. It’s the South Jersey championship, so we were expecting good competition,” Farnan said. “I’m just happy we were able to get out there, get the first goal right away and add to it.” “Obviously, Ocean City has a long tradition of success, but I’m just so proud of this team. Every year it’s about this year’s team, taking care of ourselves first. The girls, when they jump on that train and focus all of their energies on that, I think it helps make them successful,” said Red Raiders coach Cory Terry. Last year, the Red Raiders relied mainly on star players such as Kelly Hanna and Lauren McNally, both of whom are now playing Division I field hockey, Hanna at Rutgers and McNally at Penn State. This year’s team doesn’t have any particular superstars, but has come together nicely as a team, particularly following a 4-1 loss to powerful Eastern Regional in late October. 
Senior captain Jordan Allegretto prepares to send a ball into the circle during the Red Raiders’ championship win on Friday in Ocean City. “This group is definitely a team in every sense of the word. They have become way more tenacious as the season has gone on, and I think they have become more confident,” Terry said. “When you have two players in the middle like Kelly and Lauren barking out orders, and you’re used to that, they really had to come into their own, and they’ve really done that. And they have done it together, which I think is ultimately what is going to make them successful in the end, and has made them very successful. I’m just so incredibly proud of them.” The normally highly intense Terry even let the girls go home after the game without the normal post-game workout. “I think she’s all yelled out,” Farnan said with a laugh. “She’s been really happy with what we have been doing. She’s recognizing that we are starting to click now. After taking that loss to Eastern, we kind of took a step back and put everything into perspective. We used that as motivation to work harder and go harder in practice every day. We tried to work on things we’ve been working on all season, and I’m glad that it’s paying off.” Farnan and Allegretto said Friday was bittersweet. They won another championship, but will never again play at the field on Bay Avenue as Red Raiders. Ocean City will play at a neutral site when they take on Central Jersey Group 3 champion Moorestown, a 2-1 winner over Allentown. “It’s really emotional. Me, Jordan and the other seniors have been a part of this. We’ve gone to states every single year that we have been here,” Farnan said. “There’s definitely a lot of pressure on us, but we just try to have fun with it.” Said Allegretto, “It’s a great feeling, but it’s also sad. I just played my last home game ever. But I’m just so happy to be a part of this program for the last four years. It’s taught me a lot of life lessons.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays [adsense]
Field hockey: Ocean City makes school history by winning fourth straight South Jersey title
