LISBON FALLS

When the Lisbon and Winthrop high school field hockey teams get together, one thing is typically a given. The game will be close and will likely come down to which team takes advantage of a mistake.

In Monday’s Mountain Valley Conference matchup, the Greyhounds blinked first and the Ramblers took advantage, getting the game-winning goal from Moriah Hajduk with 11:06 remaining in regulation en route to a 2-0 win.

The victory gives Winthrop a 5-3 mark, while the Greyhounds fell to 2-6 after another close loss. All six of Lisbon’s setbacks have been by one or two goals.

Down 1-0 after Hajduk’s goal, Lisbon began to push the Ramblers for the first time since the opening moments produced a Greyhound penalty corner and a close miss by Charlotte Mooney.

“They need to get started earlier, and we just told them the way they ended that game is the way they need to be playing,” said Lisbon coach Julie Petrie, who returned recently after giving birth to twin girls. “They have the potential. It’s just about keeping that intensity up for 60 minutes instead of 10.”

An injury to Lisbon forward Hannah Berube (lower leg) right in front of the Lisbon bench caused a 15- minute delay with 14:55 remaining in the second half. Just three minutes after play resumed, Hajduk tipped a pass from teammate Emily Molino inside the right post for the game’s first goal.

“We really talked about getting the passes up and working on keeping control of the ball and not getting too overwhelmed,” said Hajduk of her team’s discussions during the injury timeout.“We had to keep up the intensity. We have a tendency of coming out of a timeout and giving up a goal.”

And her goal … “I was on post and it went past the goalie pads and my stick was in the right place at the right time.”

“We have been working on coming out of timeouts with the same determination and desire,” said Winthrop coach Jess Merrill. “We knew that they were going to come out stronger, and we had to match that.”

Lisbon made a strong bid to tie the game with nine minutes left as Chase Collier moved from the right wing to the left side of the field. She controlled a pass from Kate Philbrick and fired a shot on the Winthrop net. Ramblers goaltender Corinna Coulton (three saves) made the stop.

Winthrop transitioned quickly. Hajduk sent a long pass to Kate Perkins, who broke in alone on Lisbon keeper Mikaylia Harnden (six saves). Perkins made a move to the right before shooting back to the left for a two-goal Ramblers lead with 5:29 remaining.

Merrill walked off the Lisbon field knowing her team had just picked up a big road win.

“Lisbon is always a tough team for us,” said Merrill. “They play strong, and we knew with Julie back that they were going to play differently. Beating them on their turf is a good momentum builder for us.”

For Petrie and assistant coach Joanne Campbell, who has run the team during Petrie’s absence, the feeling is that the Greyhounds are close to finding success again, with a visit to Boothbay slated for Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.

“They just need to get some goals to get that confidence,” said Petrie. “We don’t have the depth that we once had, and it is taking us a while to figure things out. It is about making changes and seeing what clicks. We have time.”

Winthrop 2, Lisbon 0

At Lisbon
Winthrop — 0 2 — 2
Lisbon — 0 0 — 0
Goals — (W) Moriah Hajduk, Kate Perkins.
Assists — (W) Emily Molino, Moriah Hajduk.
Shots on goal — Winthrop 8, Lisbon 3.
Saves — (W) Corinna Coulton 3; (L) Mikaylia
Harnden 6.
Penalty corners — Winthrop 13, Lisbon 3.
Records — Winthrop 5-3, Lisbon 2-6.
Up next for the Greyhounds — Wednesday at
Boothbay, 3:30 p.m.