Garden City's Amanda Pinou and Vestal's Haley Carey play the...

Garden City's Amanda Pinou and Vestal's Haley Carey play the ball in the third quarter during the New York State Class B field hockey championship on Sunday at Centereach. Credit: Bob Sorensen

Garden City field hockey entered Sunday's state Class B final on a 13-game win streak that included a Nassau and Long Island title. But Vestal (Section IV) stood in the way of the state crown.

And while the Trojans trailed by two in the fourth quarter, not a single player eased the pressure on the Golden Bears. Despite the efforts, Garden City lost, 2-1, at Centereach High School.

“Well, the fact of the matter is today we played our hearts out, and we did everything we possibly could to try and win,” senior goalkeeper Mackenzie Wehrum said. “Although we didn’t, I’m extremely proud of how far my team has come … The fact that we got here out of our hard work and determination alone is phenomenal.”

With about nine minutes left in the second quarter, Vestal’s Madison Lilley deflected Adrienne Mayes’ shot off a corner into the goal to put the Golden Bears up 1-0.

Vestal (15-5) struck again in the third quarter on a corner play. Wehrum made a save, but Kendall Brady converted the rebound for a 2-0 lead with 10 minutes left in the quarter.

Despite trailing, the Trojans (16-2) kept high intensity as the game winded down. Senior captain Rory Heslin scored with 4:24 left in the game off an assist from senior midfielder Marie Cacciabaudo.

“[The seniors] had a tremendous impact,” Garden City coach Lauren Lavelle said. “They chose to lead with integrity always, on and off the field. They were always so kind to anybody that needed help or anybody that was new to the team.”

Garden City had 35 players on the roster, seven were starting seniors. Lavelle said she had the large roster because she wanted the underclassmen to learn from the seniors.

“It’s very easy to come together as a team even though we are so big,” Heslin said. “I think the underclassmen are going to kill it next year.”

Wehrum, too, is ready to pass the torch and hopes the returning players will learn from this season.

“Nothing was ever handed to us, so they’re going to have to carry that lesson with them through next year,” Wehrum said. “If they want to get this far, they have to keep fighting for it.”

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