Oak Knoll Field Hockey Wins Overtime Thriller

And for the second consectutive game the Summit school found a way to pull out a hard-fought victory in overtime.

 

With 4:59 remaining in the second overtime period, Seton Hartnett took a pass from Lindsey O'Loughlin and slammed home the winning goal to give Oak Knoll a 2-1 decision over Johnson of Clark on Saturday afternoon.

 

On Oct. 1, Oak Knoll, ranked third by The Star-Ledger, trailed No. 5 Madison, 1-0, before coming back to earn a 2-1 victory in the first overtime.

 

"That play was all Lindsey," Hartnett, a senior forward said. "She was open on the right side and just gave me a great pass."

 

Johnson (4-3), which has lost to Oak Knoll in each of the last five Union County Tournament finals and has now dropped nine straight games to its rival, entered the game ranked No. 14 in the state.

 

And it looked like Johnson would improve on that ranking as it took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Kellie Campbell with 19:33 left in the second half.

 

Oak Knoll (8-0), however, responded with the game-tying goal as Hartnett knocked in a pass from Theresa Benvenuti with 8:47 left in the second half.

 

Benvenuti had a goal and an assist in the Madison victory.

 

Once the game went to overtime, Oak Knoll seemed to have the better of play and almost ended the game in the first 10-minute extra session but Elizabeth Jacobson's point-blank shot was stopped by Johnson goalie Becky Brattole.

 

"We seem to play well in overtime," said Hartnett, who now has a team-leading 11 goals. "Johnson is always a tough opponent for us. But when we got down by a goal we just stayed calm."

 

O'Loughlin, who now has eight goals and four assists, was equally impressed by Johnson's play.

 

"We knew it would be a tough game with them. It always is," said O'Loughlin, a junior wing.

 

Oak Knoll finished with a 14-7 advantage in shots and a 9-4 edge in penalty corners. Oak Knoll goalie Maggie Blackwood ended up with six saves.

 

"We play a very tough schedule and this was a challenging week," said Oak Knoll coach Ali Good, who had guided her team to the last three NJSIAA Group 1 state titles. "It took us a little longer than we would've wanted today, but they came through."

 

Oak Knoll will be back in action on Tuesday, Oct. 6, when it plays at Summit. It hosts Cranford the following day. Both games are at 4 p.m.