MARYLAND HEIGHTS – The memories resurfaced for St. Joseph’s goalie Paige Jackson soon after the Angels qualified for the state semifinals.
Before she arrived at Sportport on Thursday, she replayed in her mind the Angels’ devastating overtime loss at the final four last season.
“It hit me. All the memories were coming back,” Jackson said. “I thought, ‘It’s been a year. We’ve been in this spot, and now we have to capitalize.’”
Jackson captained a stifling defensive effort with seven saves and freshman Mia Ryan scored twice to lead St. Joseph’s to a 3-1 victory over Cor Jesu in a Midwest Field Hockey Tournament state semifinal Thursday at Sportport International in Maryland Heights.
St. Joseph’s (15-4) advanced to its first state title game since 2016 and will face John Burroughs (19-0-2) for the Midwest Tournament championship at 2 p.m. Saturday at Sportport International in Maryland Heights.
Cor Jesu (15-5) capitalized first when junior Molly Stutte made a steal and advanced a pass to senior Jordan Sadler for a quick shot. The blast was stopped by the right pad of Jackson, but the carom found the stick of senior Allie Massmann, who deposited it into the vacant cage just 2 minutes 20 seconds into the contest.
“We didn’t want the first quarter to end without answering back, because we know how that ends up,” St. Joseph’s coach Claire Aubel said. “We didn’t let it get in our heads, we kept playing our game and fought back.”
St. Joseph’s immediately tilted the field in its direction. Senior Lauren Miner found junior Anna Spalitto in the circle for a turnaround shot that snuck into the cage 2 minutes 25 seconds after the Angels had yielded the opening goal.
“The passes were all flowing and connected. I took a whip at it, and it went straight to the corner,” said Spalitto, who scored her team-leading 16th goal of the season and fourth of the playoffs.
Physical battles between the teams forced three different Cor Jesu players to the bench to receive medical treatment to clean up cuts, and when junior Molly Stutte fell backwards and landed on her wrist, the Chargers’ leading scorer was forced to miss the remainder of the half.
While Cor Jesu tried to manage positions and substitutes, St. Joe’s put its foot on the pedal.
KK Dooley made a steal in the offensive zone, eluded defenders and delivered a pass to senior Meredith Dunn, whose centering feed found Spalitto’s stick. Spalitto sent a shot goalward which Ryan deftly redirected into the cage to give St. Joseph’s a 2-0 lead.
“In the moment it just felt right. I saw (Dunn) in the corner, I sent her the ball, beautiful cross and boom,” Dooley said.
Less than four minutes later, Ryan struck again. She received a pass in the circle from sophomore Maddie Croghan, settled it, calmly turned, picked a spot and deposited it into the cage to give St. Joseph’s a 3-1 halftime advantage.
“I try to be calm and not frantic, because usually when I’m frantic I lose the ball. I’ve learned to be calm throughout the season,” said Ryan who scored her eighth goal of the season and second game-winner.
Stutte, who scored 26 goals this season, tried to return to action in the third quarter but could not grasp her stick and played only briefly. Defender Mattea Vest, playing with a cast over a broken thumb, was outstanding defensively and Massmann continued to be dangerous on the left side.
Despite being bruised and shorthanded, the Chargers put forth a courageous performance for the full 60 minutes.
“I’m just so proud of the way they played regardless of the score. They kept their composure and they played from the start of the game to the very end. You can’t really ask any more from a team,” Cor Jesu coach Audrey Ploesser said.
The Chargers earned three penalty corners late in the game, but the flying defense of junior Jo Carollo and the leadership of Jackson in goal prevented any harm.
“It was a little bit stressful at the end getting all those corners (against us), but we have a great goalie behind us and she talks us through every play so we know where to be,” Dooley said.
Jackson played seven sports before falling in love with field hockey after her first practice in seventh grade. She won a state title with Villa Duchesne as a freshman and cherishes the opportunity to make a new championship memory as a senior.
“I just have to make sure to stay on my toes, not overthink it and play in the moment,” Jackson said.
She added, “I’m excited for Saturday.”