WASHINGTON TWP. -- The numbers didn't quite add up for Warren Hills' field hockey team -- at least in the all-important win column.
Despite finishing with the statistical edge in shots and penalty corners, the Blue Streaks dropped a 2-1 decision to state power Bridgewater-Raritan on Saturday on the turf at Warren Hills School District Stadium.
Warren Hills (3-3-1) is now even after its early season gauntlet of powerhouse opponents. The Streaks, who fell 2-1 in overtime to rival Voorhees on Tuesday, also lost 2-1 to 2012 champion Bishop Eustace on Sept. 14.
"This was a tough game. We played well," said veteran Streaks coach Laurie Kerr, now 9-7 all-time against Bridgewater dating to her first season in 2000. "But we have to get the ball in the cage. We were on the attack the whole second half. We just didn't finish."
Bridgewater (5-1), which has lost eight straight Group 4 finals to Eastern, finished off two of its few opportunities to erase an early 1-0 deficit. Despite being held without a shot on goal in the second half and having zero penalty corners in 60 minutes, coach Kathie DeBonis' Panthers held on for their eight victory in the last nine meetings with the Streaks, including last year's 3-1 win at home.
"Warren Hills is one of the toughest teams we've played this season," said DeBonis, now 270-104-8 overall and 7-18-1 vs. Warren Hills in 19 seasons. "I thought our passing game in the first half was tremendous. We played a man down for pretty much the first 10 minutes and still dominated. I'm proud of my kids."
DeBonis was less than thrilled with some of the officiating in this one. The veteran coach couldn't recall a game in which her team was held without a penalty corner. Nearly four minutes into the game, forward Leah Watson was given a yellow card for a high stick infraction and was sent to the sideline for 10 minutes, leaving Bridgewater a player short.
Warren Hills capitalized just minutes after the teams were at full strength, when super freshman forward Dani Profita connected off a feed from senior forward Shannon Zignoli at the 15:52 mark.
The lead didn't last long, as Bridgewater answered with two goals in the span of nearly two minutes to take a 2-1 lead. Midfielder Lauren Cleary tied the game after a rocket shot and save set up her score with 14:38 left. Sarah Dimock connected for the go-ahead goal with 12:45 left in the first half. Dimock also sat for five minutes earlier in the half after being hit with a green card for not being five yards back on defense with Warren Hills in possession of the ball.
From that point on, Warren Hills seized control of the game. The Streaks erased a 10-6 first-half deficit in shots with an 8-0 run in the second half, while also gaining seven penalty corners. But the offense couldn't turn any of those chances into goals.
"We've had problems finishing," said junior forward Sydney Muntone, who leads the Streaks with seven goals and was kept off the board for just the second time this season. "Warren Hills field hockey is always passing and not dribbling. Today, we were just a little off. For some reason, they wouldn't go in today. I felt we dominated and had a lot of opportunities. Everyone has bad days."
Both defenses were stout. Junior goalie Kylie Guidi got her first start for Warren Hills, stopping eight of the 10 shots she faced. Sophomore Taylor Austin, who started the first six games, replaced Guidi with 10 minutes left in the second half.
"I wanted to mix it up," Kerr said. "Taylor had been starting. I wanted to give both a chance in games to see what they can do. Kylie has been working hard."
Warren Hills also gained momentum with the return of senior midfielder Nikki Schott, who arrived late in the opening half after taking her ACT exam. Schott, a four-year starter and an excellent distributor of the ball, helped get things moving to a talented forward line.
"[Schott coming into the game] gave us a lot of confidence," Kerr said. "We hung with [Bridgewater] in the first half without Nikki in there. We played really hard today."
Warren Hills, which now leads 24-8-1 in the all-time series with Bridgewater-Raritan dating to 1991 when the district's East and West schools merged, next hosts Montgomery on Tuesday in a Raritan Division matchup before hitting the road against Delaware Valley (Thursday) and Peddie (next Saturday).
Bridgewater (5-1) 2 0 -- 2
Warren Hills (3-3-1) 1 0 -- 1
Scoring
First half -- WH, Dani Profita, 4th, (Shannon Zignoli), 15:52; B, Lauren Cleary, 3rd, (Emily Miller), 14:38; B, Sarah Dimock, 1st, 12:45.
Shots -- Bridgewater 10; Warren Hills 14.
Saves -- Elyse Pyle 13 (B); Kylie Guidi 8, Taylor Austin 0 (WH).
Penalty corners -- Bridgewater 0; Warren Hills 12.
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