Lakeland beats Wayne Hills, advances to Passaic County tournament final by Kevin Czerwinski special to The Record
Madison Stout’s goal eight minutes into the second half Thursday lifted top-seeded Lakeland by fourth-seeded Wayne Hills, 1-0, in The Passaic County field hockey tournament.
The Lancers (10-1-1) will face second-seeded and defending County champ West Milford on Oct. 13 in the 6:00 p.m. championship match at Wayne Hills. Lakeland’s only County title came in 2012.
Stout deflected an Alex Barna shot off a corner by Patriot goalie Annisa Morales-Logue in what proved to be a defensive battle. Lakeland limited Wayne Hills (6-6) to one shot on goal while Morales-Logue played a strong game, recording 10 saves.
“It was a very intense game and both teams played very well,” Lakeland coach Patty Kebrdle said. “Today’s win is pretty big. It’s exciting for us to get to the finals. My defense had another outstanding game where we shut down the opposing offense.”
Lakeland and West Milford played to a 1-1 tie on Sept. 9 at Lakeland.
WEST MILFORD: Field hockey: West Milford tops Wayne Valley, advances to Passaic County championship
RANKINGS: H.S. field hockey rankings for Sept. 30
“It’s always a very competitive game against West Milford,” Kebrdle said. “They are in our Section and in the County so we see them three times and there is a high, emotional charge because both teams have good programs.
“My team is young and this is a fantastic experience for them but I don’t want them to get caught up in the emotion and the hype. If they stay focused and play their game [against West Milford] it could be a great game. A lot of these girls have sisters or friends on that 2012 team so they saw it.”
The Lancers, however, did receive some bad news this week that puts a bit of a damper on Thursday’s win. MRI results showed that sophomore midfielder Cory Sahanas has a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee and will be out for six months. She is one of Lakeland’s primary offensive threats.
“I think it happened when we played Ramsey [Sept. 19],” Kebrdle said. “Now we’re doing a scramble trying to move people around in different positions. I feel terrible for Cory because she also plays basketball and now she is out for both seasons. She made the difference for my team this year.”