St. Mary’s Academy had won just two state tournament games in 10 opportunities before this season. And it had never scored a goal in three previous postseason matchups with Kent Denver.
So there was little reason to believe the Wildcats had much of a chance Monday night in the state field hockey championship game at All-City Stadium.
St. Mary’s wasn’t even favored to get this far. But after overtime upsets of Colorado Academy and top-seeded Smoky Hill, the fifth-seeded Wildcats had reason to believe.
Liz Deline’s second goal of the game, with 2 minutes, 51 seconds left in overtime, provided the winner in a 2-1 upset over No. 2 seed Kent Denver, giving St. Mary’s its first state field hockey title.
“We’re excited. Our program is building,” said Deline, named The Denver Post’s MVP.
“For us to beat anybody for a state championship is unbelievable,” St. Mary’s coach Marcene Murphy said. “But for it to be our neighborhood rival, Kent Denver, somebody who’s always the team to beat, it’s an unbelievable championship for us.”
St. Mary’s (13-4-1), playing in its first state title game, pushed across the game’s first goal 4:16 in. With Stephanie Guglielmo assisting, Deline punched the ball inside the left post past Kent Denver goalie Lizzy Clark.
With less than a minute remaining in regulation, Sun Devils freshman forward Lucy Dikeou came up with the biggest goal of her career.
Her breakaway found the net with 38 seconds left, forcing overtime. That seemed to bode well for Kent Denver (14-3-1), which had outscored the Wildcats 15-0 in three previous meetings in the state tournament.
“The game isn’t over until the clock hits zero,” Kent Denver coach Kathy James said. “I’ve always said that on this type of (artificial) surface, you can score in 10 seconds, so never let up.”
St. Mary’s had a chance to end the game in regulation when it was awarded a penalty corner with no time left on the clock. But Kent Denver denied the Wildcats, setting up the dramatic overtime.
St. Mary’s Academy 1 0 1 — 2
Kent Denver 0 1 0 — 1
Goals (assists) — SMA: Deline (S. Guglielmo), 5th minute; KD: Dikeou, 60th minute; SMA: Deline, 68th minute. Penalty corners — St. Mary’s 1-5—6; Kent Denver 4-3—7.
MVP
Liz Deline, St. Mary’s Acad., sr., attacker
Deline scored two goals in Monday’s title game in giving the Wildcats their first championship in their 10th state tournament appearance. She scored in the game’s first five minutes, then added the game-winner with 2:51 left in overtime.
