Beating Pocomoke has required near perfection in recent years. The Warriors have played for state titles the past three seasons with few slowing them down.
Fallston, the lone Harford County field hockey team remaining, tried Wednesday in the Class 1A MPSSAA state semifinals. However, the Cougars struggled from the start in a 4-1 loss, unable to keep up with Pocomoke’s speed on offense or penetrate its stifling back line. And for the second consecutive season, Fallston’s season ended courtesy of the Eastern Shore power.
“We knew what to expect,” coach Jackie Cummings said. “They’re always strong and they’re fast. At the end of the day, they outhustled us.”
Pocomoke will play in its fourth consecutive state title game with a chance to win its third in that span at 5 p.m. Saturday at Stevenson University.
Fallston players knew the weight that Wednesday held. The Cougars’ postseason defeat to these Warriors last season created a slight mental hurdle of sorts entering this matchup. So it became Cummings’ job to remind them that Pocomoke likely saw Fallston as the same level of threat that they did — Pocomoke has the second most field hockey state championships ever in Maryland (21), but Fallston is right behind them in third (14).
Two-seed Fallston played staunch defense in a first quarter that ended in a 1-1 tie. The Cougars killed six Pocomoke penalties as the Warriors controlled possession early, then took advantage of their first chance on offense in the opening quarter. Senior midfielder Sarah Gent tapped a pass to the back of the net late in the period to even the score.
“We had more defensive corners in that quarter than I’ve had in entire games,” Cummings said. “They swarm, they try to get you to take the bait. You wanna pass and move to avoid that, and that’s how we got that scoring opportunity.”
But that defensive prowess cracked in the second quarter, when third-seeded Pocomoke scored twice to take a 3-1 lead into halftime.
Pocomoke’s command of possession extended beyond the break. Fallston allowed a score on a penalty corner near the end of the third period to put the Cougars in a 4-1 hole, which held until the final whistle.
“Looking at the second half to the first half, my team kind of settled down and played like they do,” Cummings said. “It was a 1-0 game in the second half. They did their game instead of reacting to the other team.”
Still, the Cougars’ future is bright with a young core centered around Layla King. The sophomore midfielder led Fallston with 12 goals and 11 assists this season and is already a focal point of what Cummings’ team aspires to be offensively.
King, who tallied three goals in Fallston’s state quarterfinal victory but was held scoreless Wednesday, spends her offseason playing for USA Field Hockey’s U16 Nexus team. Elite competition there prepares her to lead her squad in the high school ranks.
“When you’re playing against the best, you improve and you grow your skills and even your hockey IQ,” Cummings said. “Because she’s playing so much hockey and getting so much exposure, it shows on the field.”
King and her teammates were stymied Wednesday against a familiar opponent that also gives Fallston a sense of who they need to be. Like last year, they’ll learn and adjust — and hope to be back on this stage again.
Said Cummings: “We gotta keep working on us.”
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