Field hockey: Streaks perfect together in title victory

There really was no place like home for Warren Hills' field hockey team. And what better way for 10 seniors to close out their careers then with another victory and a championship.

Senior forward Juliana Valli helped set the tone with a first-quarter goal and junior left wing Maddie Summitt matched a career high with three goals as the top-seeded Blue Streaks cruised to a 6-0 win against No. 10 West Morris in the Northwest Region C title game on Saturday afternoon.

Warren Hills celebrates its 18th section/region title.

Warren Hills (14-0) capped the program's first unbeaten campaign in 56 seasons with a ninth straight sectional/regional championship and its 18th overall. Only six other New Jersey schools have won more titles. In doing so, the Streaks, now with 724 victories, extended their home winning streak to 28 (22-0 the last two seasons) while going 45-5 overall at the stadium since 2017.

"We just really wanted to end our careers on a high note," said Valli, one of nine starting seniors and key member of a potent forward line that combined for 52 goals this season, including her career-best 14. "We've been playing together since rec. As a team, we just really wanted to get it done."

Belvidere and Vernon saw their title hopes dashed with losses in the finals. The County Seaters dropped a 2-0 decision to 2019 sectional champion Pequannock in Northwest A, while the Vikings fell, 3-1, to Morristown-Beard in the Northwest B championship contest.

West Morris (9-5-1), which knocked off the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds to reach the final, has certainly had its fill of Warren Hills, which is 6-0 all-time against the Wolfpack in postseason meetings. The Streaks handed the Morris County school losses in the last five title games, including four straight North 1, Group 3 finals from 2016-19.

"This is definitely a very special day for myself and the seniors, and the Warren Hills community," said midfielder and Rutgers University recruit Sarah Korczukowski, who capped the scoring with 9:08 left in the fourth quarter by converting the sixth penalty stroke of her career after executing one in Thursday's 2-1 win in overtime against Chatham in the region semifinals.

"It's really a great feeling to carry on the streak and Blue Streak pride."

This one was no contest from the onset as Warren Hills, which finished with a 23-4 edge in shots-on-goal, took control from the opening whistle and never looked back. Valli opened the scoring 2:29 into the first quarter when she received a pass from senior right inner Jenna Wyckoff and converted on the game's first penalty corner -- one of seven in the game for the Streaks.

"[West Morris goalie Maddy Cline] was right in front of me and she was a very physical player," Valli said. "I lifted a shot through her legs. That [goal] set a really good pace and our intensity was really up today."

Summitt, who led Warren Hills in scoring this season, tucked in the first of her three goals with 4:02 left on the clock. Senior right wing Simryn Desai recorded one of her two assists on the day on that goal and added another on Korczukowski's goal that made it 3-0 with 10:16 left in the second quarter. Summitt, who also scored three goals in an 8-1 win over Montgomery in the second game of the season, capped the first-half scoring as sophomore Maddie Moreno logged her first career assist.

The four-goal cushion at halftime enabled fourth-year coach Josie Potter, who picked up her 80th win, to breathe a bit easier after her team's sluggish start in the semifinals. West Morris had only scored 25 goals in its previous 14 games and managed just four shots-on-goal in this one against Warren Hills' vaunted defense, which recorded its eighth shutout.

"When we got to four, I started to feel pretty confident," said Potter, whose teams are 15-3 overall in the postseason. "That's a hard deficit to come back from at this level. Our defense was phenomenal. My [pregame] comment was, 'Put it away early and play 60 full [minutes].' We did come out a little flat against Chatham, which was a better team than West Morris."

After Summitt scored her team-best 18th goal in the third quarter, Korczukowski stepped to the line and sent a shot into the left corner of the cage -- the same location where she converted the stroke against Chatham.

"I've been doing the same shot the past three years," said Korczukowski, who converted one as a junior while earning the MVP Award in the 2019 Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament championship game. "It's really hard to defend against and hopefully it [gets past] the goalie."

With no state championships being contested this year due to COVID-19, these Warren Hills seniors -- including forward Angela Pawloski, midfielders Ashley Moskal and Olivia Chomut, super backs Liz Schlaffer and Kylie Compton and goalie Emily Schlessinger -- get the rare chance to savor a win in their final high school game.

"It's a bit bittersweet and it's sad to go," Korczukowski said. "We're all going on to bigger and better things but this is a really great end to the season."