Sometimes the final score doesn’t tell the full story.
Take, for instance, the Greenport/ Southold/Mattituck field hockey team’s 5-1 home loss to West Islip on Monday. The Porters realized they could have done better in the Suffolk County Division 2 match-up in Southold.
The Porters (2-3) entered the game with a winning attitude, riding a rare, two-game winning streak — a big change from last season, when they recorded only two victories all year. They defeated Babylon, 2-0, on Sept. 10, and West Babylon, 2-1, on Sept. 14.
“We came off a good win on Saturday, and we kept our momentum going,” said senior co-captain and forward-midfielder Lindsey Bednoski, who scored Greenport’s lone goal. “But we kind of were sleeping. If we were a little more awake, there would have definitely been a better outcome.”
As a Class C team, the Porters struggled in many games against bigger Class B sides last year, so last Saturday’s triumph against West Babylon could go a long way.
“We’ve never played like that,” senior co-captain and center back Jackie Martocchia said. “That was probably the best we’ve played this year. It was really cool.”
Head coach Alexis Reed added that it “was one of the best games I’ve ever seen us play in my four years of coaching.”
Reed coached three of this year’s varsity players in junior high school.
“When I moved up, they moved up,” she said.“They know the expectations of what we’re looking for and what skill level we expect them to play at. Their confidence in themselves has increased, their field hockey IQ has increased.”
Greenport’s hopes for a third successive win, however, were thwarted Monday.
The Lions (1-3) took a 1-0 lead as Kaitlyn Connolly scored the first of her two goals off a penalty corner at 7:12 into the opening quarter.
Greenport equalized on Bednoski’s goal 92 seconds later at 8:44, off an assist by senior co-captain and midfielder Aly De La Noval. “I wasn’t even sure I was near the goal,” Bednoski said. “I just reacted quick and pushed and did what I could.”
Caelie Pappone lifted the visitors into a 2-1 advantage at 8:12 of the second period.
The game’s momentum changed dramatically during a 32-second span late in the quarter as a 2-1 deficit became a 4-1 hole. Leah Yeung tallied at 11:40 and Connolly added her second at 12:12.
“I had just pulled the girls aside, and I expressed to them that that’s exactly what can happen,” Reed said. “We can either put the ball in the cage ourselves, or they’re going to take momentum and put it in their favor. They slammed the ball back at us twice. You either have the moment to close the gap or you don’t.
“We tried and gave our best efforts. It was just sloppy play in the circle, which ultimately leads to corners, ultimately leads to breakdowns. Two of those goals were scored on the opposite post, just being tipped in. It wasn’t necessarily an incredible goal that you see on ESPN. It was someone being at the right time in the right moment.”
As much as the Porters have improved, De La Noval agreed there is room for growth.
“We definitely have to fix a few things,” she said. “We were a little messy, but I think we’re definitely going to get a lot better. The movement is there. It’s just more of being there for each other. It’s more about clicking together and just making that puzzle piece match up.”
For the first time in three years, Greenport had a new goaltender as sophomore Alison Erwin replaced the graduated Dylan Reilly, an All-County selection.
“Alison’s just an incredible human being,” Reed said. “She’s super positive, she’s coachable, and she’s young. It’s going to take time to build to where Dylan was. Dylan was very much the same way when she started in 10th grade. She got better each year. Alison is going to make improvements. She didn’t get a lot of playing time last year. We’ve seen a lot of progress.”
The Porters’ goals are straightforward: They want to return to the county final, which they lost to Pierson- Bridgehampton last year, 2-1. They can exact a measure of revenge against the defending champions at home on Friday at 4 p.m.
“We have to play and beat Pierson,” Bednoski said. “That’s our goal — and to get to the post season.”
So far, the Porters are off to a pretty decent start.