The given passes, touches and sequences of a field hockey game can act as a work of art.

How players are situated, how they buzz around the field set the scene. How a defense responds has an equal role, establishing the background or foreground elements.

In Saturday’s District 3 Class 3A quarterfinal against Cumberland Valley, Mechanicsburg performed its proverbial Mona Lisa, its best impression of a Picasso. With 13 minutes remaining in regulation, Kayla Weldon stroked a pass to Mary Olivetti, and the Wildcat sophomore drove a shot into the netting to begin painting Mechanicsburg’s winning picture. The go-ahead score would hold on, and the ‘Cats escaped the Eagles’ grip for a 2-1 victory at John H. Frederick Field.  

Mechanicsburg (15-4-1) advances to Wednesday’s semifinals opposite the winner of Manheim Township and State College at a site and time to be determined while CV drops to the consolation bracket. The quarterfinal win also qualified the Wildcats for the PIAA tournament.

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“I think we all love each other so much,” Olivetti said. “We all want to win, and we do a really good job of working together, coming together and regrouping, especially if we start off slow.”

The Wildcats endured slow spurts Saturday, but Olivetti’s fourth-quarter goal subdued the hosts’ struggles. A timeout was exercised prior to the haymaker, allowing Mechanicsburg to retool its game plan.

On the ensuing possession, Weldon knifed through a host of Eagles (13-5-2) before shuffling a pass to Olivetti on the post. The sophomore’s flick into the back of the cage merely avoided the outstretched stick of CV goalkeeper Katie Hume (four saves).

“Right before (CV) called timeout, I saw that back-door cut,” Mechanicsburg head coach Tonya Brown said. “I told Kayla, ‘It is there. You have to fake to the outside, and then go.’ And she did exactly what she needed to do. It was beautiful.”

Another “beautiful” Mechanicsburg sequence unfurled with 10:37 to play in the first quarter. The Wildcats generated two corner chances, but both went for naught.

Olivetti and Brielle Garman broke the stalemate on the third attempt. The Wildcat standout ripped a back-handed pass where Garman was waiting in the shadows for the bump.

“We really have been working on these corners and working on from the 16 (-yard line) in because everybody focuses so much on Mary,” Brown said. “She’s a great passer, too, and that was just a testament to the field hockey player she is, that she can make those assists just as well as the goals.”

Between the pair of Mechanicsburg punches, the ‘Cats and Eagles traded possession advantages and field flippings. CV eventually cracked the code, converting on a third corner try of its own.

Lexi Hunter blasted in the equalizing score from the top of the shooting circle with 9:07 left in the second quarter. It was one of two Eagle shots across the 60 minutes of play.

“I think we started off a little slow, and Lexi Hunter, she did a good job of sending it out, and they just kept hitting it up,” Olivetti said. “They were going fast, and they were getting it up. But our defense did a really good job of stopping it and sending it back.”

The Wildcats peppered the cage in the second and third stanzas. Hume answered the bell amid each threat, turning away a trio of Olivetti shots to keep the tie intact.

But the Wildcats continued to brush away at their winning picture. With Olivetti’s gut-punch score, Mechanicsburg had crafted a quarterfinal work of art.

“They’re a very special group,” Brown said. “They work very hard for each other. They love each other. … It was a very good win over a really good program and a great goalie.”

Christian Eby is a sports reporter for The Sentinel and cumberlink.com. You can contact him at ceby@cumberlink.com and follow him on Twitter at: @eby_sports



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