Dream season ends with Blue Devil field hockey dominance

During last year’s Big Dance, the Davis High field hockey team lost its silver slipper.

On Saturday, the Blue Devils were the belles of the Eastern Athletic League ball.

In winning six games in two days (seven if you count a last-minute conference game Friday night against Lassen), DHS cruised through the EAL tournament — capping its incredible run with a 6-0 championship nod over upstart Corning.

“It’s our time,” coach Sandie Marotti-Huckins said after her girls danced through the tournament, which was played at Davis High. “We won league (14-0), and we wanted to have a perfect season — and we did.”

The Devils finished 23-4 overall.

In the tournament, they outscored their opponents 26-0. Oh, and don’t forget to throw in that final 2-0 Senior Night victory over Lassen on Friday.

These tired, young ladies looked none the worse for wear during their late-afternoon celebration and awards ceremony.

“We’re a family,” said DHS senior forward Rachel Paul. “It shows that hard work pays off.”

Christina Son, a 12th-grade midfielder, said the Devils “all worked so well together. We learned to work as a team, communicate and make (the right) corrections.”

Son thought the energy level — despite the grueling weekend schedule — was no problem:

“Knowing we had accomplished so much, we just wanted to keep it going in that last game.”

Sac-Joaquin Section has no field hockey postseason, so Davis now lays its sticks down until next fall.

But what memories were created …

In 20 EAL games (counting this weekend), the Blue Devils allowed one goal.

Keying that stifling defense again Friday and Saturday were midfielders Kayla Robinson and Ariana Enzerink. Deep were Elizabeth Leshuk, Emmanuel Cordier and the incomparable Malia Fujisawa.

“She’s probably the best defender I’ve ever had,” the veteran Marotti-Huckins explained. “We have such a solid defense … (starting) with a good midfield and then solid defenders behind that.”

All aspects of the Devils’ charge to their pennant were on display Saturday …

After vanquishing Yuba City, 8-0, early on, DHS made short work of Pleasant Valley, 4-0.

When Corning — who had upset last year’s champ Chico in a semifinal game — stepped onto the field, the Davis resolve was palpable.

Less than three minutes in, after Robinson, Kylie Drexel and Enzerink took stabs at Cardinal goalie Kaitlyn Huntley, a poaching Sara Pinto finally made it 1-0.

Thirty seconds later, Enzerink provided a nifty cross but no Blue Devils were home.

At 12:52 on the first period, Natalie Silver and Emily Barber worked a textbook give-and-go drive, resulting in a Barber tally.

In the final two minutes before intermission, DHS begin eyeing the league crown, thanks to goals by Paul and Barber. The point-black netfinder by Paul was her first goal of 2012.

Marotti-Huckins, shuffling her combinations (as well as the visiting Cards), watched Drexel and Barber (off another slick pass from Robinson) close out the Blue Devils’ season scoring.

Junior goalie Ally Weir made a handful of electric saves as Corning managed to challenge with six shots. The Blue Devils’ onslaught included 19 of their own — 13 on frame.

In the semifinal contest, Davis got Pleasant Valley, the team that sent DHS packing a year ago. However this fall, the Devils went 4-0 against their nemesis — beating them for the second time on the weekend.

Thanks to an early goal from Robinson, the Vikes were in a hole from the start. When Pinto scored with 1:45 until intermission, DHS began thinking about the title game.

After the break, Robinson’s pin-point pass set up Barber for a third tally. A few minutes later, Drexel drove 20 yards up the middle. When joined by the PV defense, she dumped it off to Barber, who, in turn found a wide-open Silver for the game’s final score.

Notes: Davis has seven seniors, five of whom — Enzerink, Robinson, Barber, Fujisawa and Drexel – earned all-tournament honors. … See Tuesday’s Davis Enterprise for a season-wrapup article featuring the five all-tourney members.

— Reach Bruce Gallaudet at bgallaudet@davisenterprise.net or (530) 747-8047.