Freeport’s Natalie Anderson put her field hockey team on top of visiting Cape Elizabeth midway through the first half on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 15, and from there the Falcons never looked back. Bailey Coffin and Kerry Lefebvre also scored as the team cruised to a full-tilt, 3-0 prelims victory over the Capers.

“We played very well,” said Freeport head coach Marcia Wood. “Three different people scored; we had about three different assists with all the scoring. Much better than in games in the past where we were just kind of playing the rebound off the goalie. It was finally an entire team effort, which is fabulous.”

Asked if her girls had turned in a full 60 minutes, Wood said, “There was a little bit of pressure from Cape a few times in the circle, and they had a few corners, but for the most part, we had control.”

“They’re a good team; we’ve lost to them twice (already this season),” said Cape head coach Maura Bisogni. “I think the main difference (today) was they scored a beautiful goal in the first 15 minutes and had the momentum and confidence that we never got…Getting on the board early in this league is really important. We’re also a turf team, so coming to grass is always hard – but we were here last week.”

Freeport might’ve held the momentum for much of the bout, but Cape defended admirably through the first half of the first half. Anderson finally broke the deadlock at 15:33, scoring out of a melee on an assist by Alexa Koenig. 1-0.

Cape and Freeport have met twice already this season: back on Sept. 6 and then a month later, on Oct. 4. The Falcons took both encounters, winning 4-0 the first time around and 2-1 the second.

“Beating a team three times is difficult,” said Wood. “Plus, the last game was pretty close; it was only a 2-1 game. I’m glad that we came out on fire today and were able to go into halftime with a 2-0 lead. That kind of let us be a little bit more comfortable, and even let us get another one in the second half.”

Coffin added her contribution four minutes after Anderson broke things open. Chloe Davidson fired across the front of the Cape cage from low on the right side, where Coffin nimbly redirected past Capers keeper Kinnon McGrath for 2-0.

Lefebvre capped Freeport’s day in the second half, scoring the team’s third and final goal, assisted by Koenig.

Wood credited strong defensive play for the shutout. In particular, she applauded Ireland Hall, who’s been stalwart in the back third of the field throughout the season. “Ireland played a fabulous game on defense,” Wood said. “She’s an anchor back there on defense; made a lot of stops, a lot of clears out of the circle on corners defensively.”

Bisogni estimated her girls earned a dozen-plus corners, more than the Falcons did, a point she was proud of. “I don’t think we were out-played, but we couldn’t finish … It just wasn’t our day,” she said. 

Cape, who entered the tournament ranked ninth in B South, retires for the year at 5-10.

“We were 0-14 last year,” said Bisogni, “so we were disappointed we couldn’t keep going this year, but we were excited to be in the playoffs. We feel like we had a successful season, and we’re looking forward to next year.”

Freeport, the eight-seed, jumps to 7-7-1. The Falcons’ next matchup is with No. 1 York, 14-0 this autumn.

“We’ve got York, I think on Wednesday,” said Wood. “It’s kind of a theme: We play prelims and then we go see York. As a coach, I just want things to be better than the last time we played them. Whatever that is. From there, we’ll see what happens.”

When the Falcons traveled to the Wildcats in late September, they fell 5-0. Freeport looks stronger now, but York obviously remains a towering challenge. 

“Today we definitely cleaned up a lot of stuff we’ve been working on,” said Wood, asked if her team is playing their best field hockey now, when they most need to be. “We shut Cape out today when they had a lot of corners. They were in our circle quite a bit and we were able to keep pushing them out.”

“I’m hoping the girls realize what they did today and everything sort of clicked,” Wood said, “and I hope they take that into the next game. Everything was working: They were having nice passes, they were getting the ball up the field, there was communication. Much better game going to the ball and playing aggressive.”

Reaching the postseason has perhaps sharpened the Falcons’ focus. “We talked a little bit yesterday at practice,” Wood said, “and talked about ‘whatever motivates you.’ And some girls, it’s like, ‘Well, what motivates me is being able to see you guys again on Monday.’ So great, let’s do it for each other.”

Freeporter Bailey Coffin earned her team’s second goal on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 15, giving the Falcons a 2-0 advantage at the break.

Freeporter Izzy Masison fires forward on the attack for her girls vs. visiting Cape.

Caper Ellie Garfield digs the ball out of a corner, defending against an aggressive Freeport offense on Saturday afternoon.

Caper Erika Miller cuts inward on defense.

Freeport’s Alexa Koenig assisted on the Falcons’ first and third goals vs. visiting Cape on Saturday.

Falcon Grace Schnyder attempts to interrupt Caper CJ Logue, pushing out on defense.

Cape’s Sophie Miller and Freeport’s Natalie Anderson race to a runaway ball. Anderson tallied the Falcons’ first goal of the afternoon.

Caper Katie Zajkowski and Falcon Reilley Lefebvre clash in their teams’ playoff matchup on Saturday afternoon.

Maya Bradbury pushes through midfield for the Falcons on the attack Saturday afternoon.