Gulls Are Back to Back CCC Champions After Another OT Thriller

BEVERLY, Mass. -- For the second consecutive year, Endicott midfielder Taylor Matties (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) scored in overtime of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) field hockey championship game to send the Gulls to victory. On Saturday at North field, top-seeded Endicott defeated #3 Nichols 2-1 in sudden death to repeat as champions and win the program's second CCC Field Hockey title.

Matties struck three minutes and sixteen seconds into overtime with her sixth goal of the year, ending a game that was reminiscent of last year's title game, in which she lifted the Gulls over the University of New England to a 2-1 victory with a goal just a minute into the extra period.

"I think it's a product of the hard work that Taylor and the whole team put in throughout the game," said Gulls head coach Jodi Cipolla of Matties' prowess for late-game heroics. "The whole team just stuck together and when fatigue set in, our team's energy and emotions carried us through."

Saturday's victory did not come easily for Endicott, as Nichols thoroughly dominated the first half, outshooting Endicott 12-3 and having a 9-2 edge in penalty corners. The Bison got their noses in front just over seven minutes into play on a shot from the top of the right circle by freshman Meghan Dombkowski (Sagaponack, N.Y.). The assist went to top-scorer and co-CCC Offensive Player of the Year Emily Widdison (Greenfield, Mass.), her ninth helper and CCC-high 55^th point of the season.

The Gulls tied the game five minutes later when sophomore Kathryn Walker (Middlebury, Conn.) picked up the rebound of a shot by Hannah Thornberg (Oakland, Maine) and buried her fifth goal of the season. Walker scored crucial goals in both of Endicott's CCC tournament victories.

From there the teams played to a stalemate for the next hour, though Endicott put pressure on the Bison in the second half, outshooting the visitors 8-3. Both goalkeepers were kept busy during the game, with Endicott senior Taylor Teixeira (Exeter, N.H.) making ten stops, including seven in the first half.

Sophomore Molly Melanson (Simsbury, Conn.) made six saves in the game for Nichols, five of them after the halftime break. The Bison also had goals called back in each half, which seemed to deflate their attack for brief moments, but they kept the pressure on and Endicott needed to step up their play as the game wore on.

"I felt like our defense really won this game for us because Nichols put a lot of offensive pressure on us," said Cipolla. "We started off timid but our momentum grew as the game went on."

Endicott (15-4) earns the CCC automatic qualifier to the NCAA tournament, and will find out their opponent and game site during Monday's selection show.  The Gulls led the CCC for the entire season, finishing with a 9-1 record and earning the top seed for the second straight season.

Last year they travelled to Keene State for their NCAA appearance and battled hard but fell 2-0 to an older and more experienced team. This year, Coach Cipolla believes that they will be better prepared. "We're excited to see where we're going and who we match up against. Having a year of experience under our belt is going to work in our favor," said Cipolla. "We had one senior last year and we are going back with five now. All of our current key factors played in that NCAA game last year, so they know what it's like."

Nichols falls to 13-8 on the year and will await an anticipated bid to the ECAC New England tournament.