FRANKLIN, Mass. – Franklin has made no secret of its desire to make another deep playoff run, but, even for a team that reached the state semifinal a year ago, it’s natural to feel some extra nerves ahead of the opening tournament game, especially when facing an unfamiliar foe with a still relatively young roster.
The Panthers got a stiff challenge in Friday’s first round game at the Beaver St. Field. Barnstable, the No. 28 seed, was able to withstand Franklin’s pressure for long stretches of the game, keeping within a goal until the final five minutes of a 2-0 loss.
It was the type of battle that can be a reminder for a team that scored 129 goals in the regular season and has gone unbeaten in more than 60 straight league games that things are different once the tournament kicks off.
“You never know,” said Franklin coach Michelle Hess. “I’ve never played them before, I didn’t know anything about them, you can only watch so much film, and they show up and they’re better than I expected, especially being the 28 seed.”
She added, “I don’t think we took them lightly, I just think that, because we’re a young team, we get nervous and it’s tournament and there’s a lot at stake. Today, it took us a while to settle in.”
While Barnstable was able to hold Franklin off the board, the Panthers largely dominated play. The Panthers had an 11-2 edge in corners and the Redhawks didn’t manage a single shot on target, while forcing the Barnstable goalie into 12 saves and causing numerous scrambles in front of the Redhawks goal.
Franklin got off to a quick start with Kaitlyn Carney playing the ball across to Haley Wernig, who forced a save from the right wing. Shaw Downing latched onto the rebound but with a mass of bodies in the crease was unable to get the shot on target. On the resulting corner Payten Crandall had her shot saved and Downing again reacted first to the rebound but the shot was wide.
In the final minute of the quarter, Brooke Taylor intercepted a pass and played the ball up the sideline to Downing, who was able to keep the ball in play to Wernig. Crandall couldn’t touch home the cross at the far post, Downing had her effort saved, and Crandall again was inches from tapping home at the back stick.
“I think we had some frustration,” Hess said about her team’s efforts to find a goal. “We just need to keep reminding them that unfortunately there are games that are going to go this way and you just have to keep pounding. As a team, we’ve never shot the ball wide that many times. We couldn’t find the net today.”
The pattern of play continued in the second. Emily Carney was the main creator for the Panthers, weaving her way through defenders to open space in the middle of the field. Carney teed up Wernig for a shot that was kicked out, then sent a low ball in from the left that was tipped wide by Raena Crandall.
Franklin finally found the breakthrough with 14.4 left in the half. Taylor again started the move with a ball up the right side to Wernig. The sophomore forward beat her marker and then slipped a pass in behind the last defender for Kaitlyn Carney to run onto and the league’s top scorer made no mistake with a shot into the bottom corner.
In the third quarter, Emily Carney went down with an injury and while she was being tended to on the sideline Barnstable had its best spell of the game, forcing a pair of corners and finally giving Franklin freshman goalie Devon Barry something to worry about, although in the end the defense of Ella Griffin, Kaeley Dubriske, Sophia Cuneo, and Lindsay Dennett didn’t allow a shot to get through.
Carney’s return to the field helped Franklin regain control and finish the quarter with a flurry of chances. Her touch at the top of the crease opened space for a shot on goal and Wernig just missed tapping in the rebound. Downing also got a chance with a run through the heart of the Redhawks defense but again the shot was kicked aside.
“She’s a little bit more of a finesse player and I would say her field sense, the way she sees the field, is probably her biggest strength,” Hess said about Carney. “She’s just so talented, her stick skills, and she’s that calming force. Anytime we get her the ball, we move it down the other end. She’s the key to our transition.”
The Panthers were chasing the goal that could seal progress to the next round and early in the fourth Cuneo’s pass off a restart opened space for Downing in the middle, but it was saved. Wernig almost created the second with another run down the wing and her cross into the middle picked out Payten Crandall on the doorstep only for the goalie to make a great stop.
While the coaches were preaching patience and using up the clock, it was a quick restart that led to the second goal. Kaitlyn Carney grabbed the ball quickly and passed it 30 yards to Downing in the middle of the field. She turned and rolled a perfect pass out to Crandall on the left side.
Franklin had numbers in transition for one of the few times in the game and Crandall got the ball back to Downing, who was able to settle the pass and then settle the game with a shot into the corner.
“That was huge,” Hess said. “I had just given them a speech during the timeout, slow it down, take your time, get a good free hit. But, that’s just her field hockey IQ, seeing that and getting it rolling.”
Franklin (17-1-1) will be home on Wednesday afternoon for the Sweet Sixteen to face No. 12 Needham.