Field hockey: McLean helps Vikes end title drought

It certainly helps to have that go-to player on offense during crunch time. For Voorhees' field hockey team, that difference-maker was senior forward Kathrine McLean.

McLean sparked a regional championship run with two goals, including the decisive score in a wild third quarter, as the top-seeded Vikings posted a 4-2 win over previously-unbeaten Lawrence in the Central West A final on Friday afternoon at Richard Degnan Field.

Voorhees celebrates the title and win No. 682.

Voorhees (14-1-1) ended three years of playoff frustration -- all sectional semifinal exits -- in securing the program's eighth postseason title and first since 2016. This year's format was regional (involving teams from Hunterdon, Mercer and Somerset counties) instead of the traditional sectional format that adheres to school size.

Third-year coach Shannon Hughes, whose teams are now 5-2 overall in postseason games, earned her first postseason championship with the Vikes, who cruised to the Skyland Conference Valley Division title this season. McLean, who will play lacrosse at the University of Colorado next fall, was a big reason for the success as she led the team in scoring with 18 goals and 21 assists.

"I feel like as a coach this is 10 times more rewarding than winning as a player," said Hughes, who led South Plainfield to a sectional runner-up finish in 2013 as a player with 28 goals and 23 assists in her senior season with her mother, Cheryl, as the head coach. "You see all the hard work and the team camaraderie. It's a great feeling."

McLean, who logged at least one goal or an assist in all but three games this season, came into the final having recorded six assists in the previous three contests, including three in a 6-0 first-round victory over Robbinsville on Monday. She added two more in this victory.

"I think she played her best game tonight," Hughes said. "She was on fire. She's really fast and it's hard to keep up with her."

Senior back Grace Schiavo, one of the top defensive players in the state, was her usual dominating force in the middle of the field, while senior forward Tess Rodenburger and sophomore forward Kate Matyas also scored goals in the title win. Junior midfielder Sadie Eichlin and super freshmen Kate Cookson and Alexa Barkman will carry the torch next season.

"Gracie Schiavo hustled her butt off and Sadie is so sound defensively," Hughes said.

Voorhees jumped out to a 1-0 lead when McLean connected off a penalty corner with 10:18 left on the clock in the first quarter. That's how it stood at halftime before the teams combined for five third-quarter goals -- starting with Matyas' fourth of the season off a corner.

Lawrence star forward Talia Schenck, a junior who is Mercer County's leading scorer and is heading to Cornell, put the Cardinals (11-1) on the board with 10:30 to go in the third. But McLean answered to give the Vikes a two-goal cushion before Schenck tipped in her 47th goal of the season to make it 3-2. Rodenburger capped the scoring at the 1:24 mark with her 17th goal.

Schenck, a speedy and highly-skilled player, was a concern for Voorhees coming into the contest and Hughes knew her offense, which racked up 14 goals in three playoff victories, had to be up to the challenge. With Cookson unable to play, junior Leigha Schultze moved to center forward and Ava Smadi played at the post.

"Talia is a great player and the best offensive player I've seen in years," said Hughes, who played Division I field hockey at Rider University. "She's the real deal. She's as strong as I've seen in college. That's why it was so important that we stayed ahead. I knew she would score at least one or two goals. and they were a second half team. She knew time was running out. We went to a box-and-one [defense to slow her down late in the game]."

Now, Voorhees must find a way to replace three key seniors, including goalie Noelle Gabrish, for 2021.