PHOTO GALLERY: Severna Park Field Hockey Wins County Championship Over Arundel, 2-1

When the moment came, Kat Esposito was ready.

The junior forward for Severna Park field hockey was tapped to take a penalty stroke with less than a minute remaining in Monday night’s game against Arundel, her Falcons tied 1-1 with the Wildcats and the Anne Arundel County championship hanging in the balance.

“Stepping up to take the stroke I was a little nervous, but I kept my composure,” said Esposito, “and just did what I know how to do.”

Her shot was true, the Falcons reclaimed the lead they had fought to preserve throughout a physical battle with Wildcats, and Severna Park closed out a 2-1 victory to claim the 2019 county championship at Glen Burnie High School.

In the latest chapter of state’s elite field hockey rivalry, the Falcons (11-2) endured a fiery battle by sticking to their season-long path.

“I think just this whole year our mentality has been going forward and trying to improve, so this is a big stepping stone,” said senior forward Lila Slattery. “We definitely love playing Arundel because they’re great competition but it’s always a tough game, so we knew it would be hard, so we had to want it the most.”

It was Slattery’s goal inside the game’s first four minutes that gave Severna Park a 1-0 lead. Slattery weaved through a maze of Arundel defenders and from a seemingly impossible angle fired a rocket destined to boom on the baseboard. It was Slattery's 14th goal of the season to go with her 17 assists.

“I got a free possession on the dashes, took it myself, dodged a few girls and dribbled in, and I just like, ‘Okay, I’m going to shoot this ball,’” Slattery said. “I just let it rip, and it went in.”

For the rest of the first half, game play was mostly even, with both teams creating scoring chances. Severna Park nearly doubled its lead when a corner led to a shot by Slattery. Anna Marcoon was on the edge of the goal to fire a rebound, but the shot came off the leg pad of Arundel freshman goalie Savannah Brooks, dinged the post and trickled out.

As the second half began, Severna Park’s lead was simultaneously a blessing and a curse. Slattery had a chance to put the Falcons up 2-0 at the start of the period after Marcoon earned a stroke, but Slattery’s penalty attempt thumped the left post and fell harmlessly to the turf as the Wildcats breathed a collective sigh of relief.

View high-resolution prints and downloads of photos in this gallery. Photos by Colin Murphy

Mounting cards on Severna Park led to ongoing man-down situations, and the Falcons played nearly the entire final 25 minutes with at least one less player than Arundel, sometimes two less players. For a stretch, the Falcons were playing seven-on-10.

With numbers in their favor, Arundel deployed progressively deep attacks, and Severna Park’s defense met the challenge with epic defiance. The back line of Lauren Aguilar, Carson Smith and Zoe Day doggedly deflected, disrupted, jammed and cleared everything coming their way. Slattery, Marcoon, Sarah Adams, Jenna King, Emma Marsh, Bekah Mayron, Meredith Schepens, Erin Schaner and Ava Drexler-Amey all joined the fight, tracking back from the midfield to provide valuable minutes on defense. With 10 minutes remaining, facing a string of corners, Severna Park freshman goalie Charlotte Kramer made a trio of dazzling saves, the third the best of the bunch as she dived to make a stick save on a sure goal.

Arundel was undeterred. The Wildcats’ belief was palpable, and they kept charging towards goal. Even Arundel’s traveling band of students was deemed too loud for the same sideline as the players and was forced to relocate to the opposite stands, where they grew even louder.

Finally, the breakthrough came. With under four minutes to play, junior Hailey Kohlman was waiting on the far post and pounced on a rebound, firing over Kramer’s stick and into the goal, tying the game at 1-1 and setting off a roar from the Arundel sideline and families.

The game seemed destined for overtime when the Falcons worked the ball to the other end. King was on the goal with a chance to score for Severna Park line when Arundel was called for a penalty.

Esposito acknowledged the tension of the moment, but she also relished the opportunity and recognized the effort needed to pull out the win against a determined Arundel side.

“It was a little stressful knowing the outcome was in my hands, but I just had to stay confident in myself,” said Esposito. “As a team we had to work for each other to stay in the game. We knew that not recovering after a mistake could mean losing the game, and we had to give everything we had during that time. Even after Arundel scored, we kept pushing hard and fighting for the ball, and we never gave up.”

Severna Park head coach Shannon Garden said the county championship was a great opportunity the Falcons pursued throughout the season.

“We were honored to be in this game and with such a great opponent,” said Garden. “We wanted to have fun with it. It’s what we talked about before the game in our huddle. Arundel’s the best team we’ve seen. Twice now. Tonight got a little chaotic. We just kept taking it minute by minute.”

A defensive-minded coach, Garden praised the effort by the Falcon defenders.

“The defense, they’re just, they’re my heart and soul,” said Garden. “Are they amazing or what? They’re incredible. They have such great chemistry and such awesome field hockey skills, I can’t say enough about them. My freshman goalie—they were all incredible. No matter what happened in front of them on the field, they stayed composed, and that just shows a lot of maturity, and I can’t be any more proud of them.”

Arundel, meanwhile, showed why belong among the state’s elite since defeating Severna Park in last year’s 4A playoffs. Wildcats coach Carrie Vosburg was dismayed by the overall amount of cards the referees gave in the game, but she knows a rematch is likely in the playoffs and was resolute in her postgame comments.

“I am proud of my girls for playing an extremely clean game,” Vosburg said. “In that, we won. The scorebook speaks for itself. Clean game…We will see them, and we’re ready. And when it matters, it’ll be us.”

Severna Park’s players celebrated their achievement but tempered their excitement with measured comments about what’s still to come when the region playoffs begin next week.

“It feels really good to beat Arundel, because last year was the beginning of the rivalry,” said Adams, a senior and captain. “But it’s not over, because playoffs, and we still need to keep tunnel vision. But it does give us confidence. We just need to keep working hard like we have been.”

View high-resolution prints and downloads of photos in this gallery. Photos by Colin Murphy