Mercy v Roberts Wesleyan: The First-Ever ECC Final Is a Rematch Neither Side Could Split
They couldn’t be separated in the regular season. They shared the title, they split the two meetings, and now Mercy and Roberts Wesleyan get one more game to settle it. The first-ever East Coast Conference field hockey final is on Saturday at noon ET at Mercy Field in Dobbs Ferry, and it’s a cracker of a way to crown a first champion.
Mercy got here the hard way. Top seeds, at home, against a D’Youville side that wouldn’t go away, and it took until the 69th minute of overtime before Alyssa Benvengo got the winner in a 1-0 win. Kaylise McClure made 10 saves to keep the shutout intact. That’s the story of Mercy’s season in one game: Benvengo scores the big goal, McClure keeps them in it.
The numbers back it up. Ten wins, a programme record. Eight in a row, also a programme record. And this from a side that went 5-12 last season in their final year in the NE10. Head coach Marissa Spinazzola has turned them around fast.
Roberts Wesleyan’s route was just as dramatic. Playing in the first postseason game in the programme’s four-year history, the Redhawks came from behind to beat Dominican 2-1 on Wednesday night. Sophomore Natalee Lawrence scored twice late in the second quarter, her 10th goal of the season and then her 11th, a new school record. Saniyah Hines had put Dominican ahead. Roberts are 11-7, and they’re playing with house money now.
One win each, nothing between them
The season series tells you everything about how tight this is. Roberts won the first meeting 3-2 at home on 6 October. Mercy won the return 1-0 at home on 28 October, Benvengo scoring in the third minute off a Lilliauna Tepper assist, McClure making five saves and setting a new single-season school saves record with 168 that night. Both finished 8-2 in the league. Mercy took the top seed on the tiebreaker, which is why Saturday is in Dobbs Ferry and not Rochester.
So what decides it? For our money, it’s McClure against Lawrence. McClure has been the best keeper in the league’s first season, and she’s in the form of her life. Lawrence is the hottest scorer in it, with a school record and two goals in a semi-final. If Lawrence gets loose early, Roberts can win this. If McClure keeps her quiet for a quarter, Mercy will fancy themselves to grind it out the way they have all season.
There’s history on the line beyond the trophy, too. The ECC only added field hockey this season, its 21st championship sport, and the winner takes the first crown and the conference’s automatic NCAA place. Whoever wins on Saturday, their name goes first on a brand-new trophy. That’s the kind of thing programmes remember forever.
