The 2016 Massabesic Mustangs field hockey team is a smooth 25 horsepower engine. In car terms, 25 horsepower may not be much, but when you measure power in terms of the 25 lady Mustangs and their sticks, they are a force to be reckoned with. They are intense and firing on all cylinders the day before the Class A field hockey state championship game.

These young athletes exemplify composure, mutual respect, and focus. Those values are mirrored by their head coach, Michele Martin-Moore is a strong role model, remaining calm and collected even on the day before the big game when many might lay on the pressure.

Addressing her team at the end of its last practice, Martin-Moore said, “I don’t measure teams in terms of win-loss records. I’ve had teams with better records. I don’t measure teams in terms of how deep they go into playoffs … I judge teams by the values that you have, the way you stick together, how hard you’re working through thick and thin, and having each others backs and holding each other accountable … I judge you based on how well you represent the school and the community when you’re out there playing.”

The team is a unit whether they are on the field or off. Many of the players have fostered a long-term commitment to field hockey since ages as young as third grade. Many played in the Sanford- Springvale Youth Athletic Association (SSYAA), in middle school, and now through high school.

Junior forward Kaylee St. Laurent said, “I’ve played all the way since I was in third grade. Most of the juniors and many of the seniors have played SSYAA all the way through. Even the juniors and seniors that didn’t play [SSYAA] with us played during middle school, so that really helped gel our team before we got to high school.”

Many of the team attribute their teamwork and dedication to early athletic education. Their coordination on the field is solid evidence of that bond. During games, their passes are solid and their communication is unrivaled.

Plays are so smoothly executed that it seems that the 2016 Mustangs come equipped with radar. St. Laurent said, “A lot of times our coach will tell us to stop because we don’t want to be too telegraphed on the field and we don’t want teams to pick up what we’re doing. I think we just have great chemistry and we’ve kind of gotten a running start chemistry-wise because we played in middle school and SSYAA.”

With their well-established training program and few seniors, the team is set up to be a field hockey powerhouse for years to come. Of the next-generation Mustangs, St. Laurent said, “I have full confidence that they will step up and they already have. We can see it already this year that they’re starting to step up and I think that next year we’re going to have a lot of work to do, but we’re really going to be successful again.”

Undoubtedly, the team’s progress to the state championship game is something to be proud of, and Martin-Moore is the first to tell her team that win or lose, her pride in them will not be diminished. “I couldn’t be more proud of you. There is no way. You win this thing and I still will not be more proud of you because I can’t be more proud of you. I’ll be more happy, but I could not be more proud of you. Thank you so much for this season,” said Martin- Moore Friday at the close of practice.

With such a big title on the line as Massabesic’s potential first field hockey state championship, the team has been thrown into the limelight and yet, are still down to earth. Senior Sophia Lafrance said, “We need to remember that it’s just another game of field hockey. We can’t let the surroundings and the actual game affect us, and if we work together and work hard then good things will happen.”

The team has been showered with a level of support from the community that they never expected. Logan Champlin said, “having everyone come out for us the other day was great, because usually our games are so early in the day that it’s hard for people to come out, but to see everyone come out for us as a community kind of showed us that people are watching and supporting us.”

The team is humble and they appear surprised that many in the Waterboro community take notice of their hard work and success. Junior Sara Woodward said, “Seeing on social media all the posts from people who don’t even have kids in the school system, it’s just really awesome that everyone is supporting us.”

The Mustangs will play Skowhegan today at 3 p.m. at McMann Field in Bath for the state championship title.