McKelvey, Craig Lift Pierson Field Hockey Team to Ninth Consecutive Suffolk County Championship Win

Senior Eva McKelvey saw her penalty corner shot hit the back of the box and instantly knew it would ignite a fire in her team. It did just that, propelling the Pierson/Bridgehampton field hockey team to its ninth straight Suffolk County Class C championship win, a 2-1 victory over Greenport/Southold, at Newfield High School Monday night.

“It fueled us,” said the senior five-year starter. “As soon as we get on the board, we get going.”

As an upperclassman with the most experience, McKelvey also knew she would be relied on more heavily under first-year head coach Laura DeSario, especially after the Whalers lost six four-to-five-year varsity players from last season’s squad.

“We came into this year with our heads kind of down, knowing we were going to have to rebuild this year, but the freshmen stepped up,” McKelvey said. “These girls work so hard every single second, from workouts to game time.”

Pierson (5-10) had multiple penalty corners, but it was in the second quarter that the girls capitalized on one of McKelvey’s many hard-hitting shots right off the pass from freshman Lola Eldridge.

“I knew I’ve be relied on to take more of the shots off the corners, so I kept telling myself, ‘I’m going to get this. I’m going to get this,’ and when it went in, I was so excited,” the senior said. “It’s a different game on turf than it is on the grass field we play on, and we knew beating them in-season didn’t mean anything, but there’s such great potential on this team.”

Her shot rocked the box at the 4:00 mark, and less than a minute later, freshman Lochlyn Craig received a pass from Eldridge’s older sister Bella, a junior, for a quick 2-0 advantage.

“The first few games of the season were really scary because you don’t really know exactly what you’re doing, but as the season goes on, you start to figure things out,” Craig said. “The seniors made it easier.”

DeSario said she’s seen it first hand.

“The experienced girls took the younger ones under their wings — developed them and built up their confidence,” the coach said. “They all love the sport and love playing with each other. They’re a great group of girls, and I’m really proud of all of them.”

But the coach seconded McKelvey’s sentiment that while the Whalers shut out the Porters (2-13) 2-0 during the regular season, she didn’t want her girls to rest on their laurels. Especially when Mae Dominy cut Pierson’s lead in half with 3.2 seconds left in the second quarter.

“We wanted to come in fresh,” DeSario said. “We wanted urgency and push in the circle — but their goalie is just outstanding. She’s hard to get around.”

Pierson racked up 19 corners to Greenport’s two, and Porters senior goalkeeper Dylan Reilly made 16 saves.

“We wanted to capitalize on the corners a little more than we did, but the girls played great,” DeSario said. “Thinking about where we started to where we are now, this feels awesome, and it’s nice in my first year to keep the tradition going.”

“The amount of dedication that’s gone into every single contest — we worked our butts off all year ­— is the reason why we’re here now,” McKelvey added. “We feel worthy of this.”

Another tradition lies ahead, as the Whalers face Nassau County’s Carle Place in the Long Island Championship game on Sunday, November 5, at Northport High School at 10 a.m.

“We’ve got some work to do, but I’m excited,” DeSario said. “We want to keep this going. We’re going to keep soaring high.”