The Montclair Kimberley field hockey team can take home a couple of things from its state tournament contest with powerhouse Oak Knoll.
The second-seeded Cougars knew it was going to be a tough hill to climb against third-seeded Oak Knoll in the Non-Public North semifinals on Nov. 8 at home in Montclair.
And that was the case, as Montclair Kimberley dropped a 5-1 decision to the Royals to end the season with a 14-8 record.
Despite the defeat, MKA head coach Injoo Han felt that the Cougars came a long way since they lost the season opener, 8-0, to what turned out to be the Essex County Tournament champ, West Essex, in September.
Montclair Kimberley began the season with four freshmen getting starting time, having graduated seven seniors from the 2021 season and losing a couple of starters last season who did not return in 2022.
“When we were in the preseason, we started from square one,” said Han, whose team won the Prep B tournament championship, 5-2, over Princeton Day on Oct. 27. “I’m proud of how well we progressed from August.”
In addition, the Cougars played better against Oak Knoll within a two-week span this season. Montclair Kimberley dropped a 12-0 match on the same field on Nov. 2 to the Royals.
While Montclair Kimberley had the higher seed coming into the state semifinals, Oak Knoll was the better team and probably received fewer power points by the state since it played several out-of-state teams, which dropped its rating. After defeating MKA, the Royals would go on to beat top-seeded Kent Place, 8-0, in the Non-Public North title match.
Han can take solace from two things in the defeat by one of the top field hockey programs in the state.
First, the Montclair Kimberley defense kept Oak Knoll off the score sheet in the second half; second, the Cougars scored their first goal against Oak Knoll in nine years, spanning the previous 13 matches between the two programs. The last time MKA hit the back of the cage was in 2013, when they lost 3-1 to the Royals in the state playoffs.
When MKA finally broke through this time the score came off the stick of senior Sophia Eichmann in the second half to make it 5-1. Eichmann’s goal was assisted by junior Mimi Temkin.
The Cougars got an impressive game from their keeper, sophomore Malia Cesareo, who was under pressure for most of the match and registered 23 saves with help from Montclair Kimberley defenders including junior Shea Branigan, Temkin and sophomore Sydney Fradette.
While the Cougars limited Oak Knoll’s scoring, Cesareo and the defense were on their heels for most of the match; the Royals’ keepers only had to make two saves in the contest.
Montclair Kimberley was down 5-0 at halftime. “I thought that in the first half that we played very defensively,” Han said. “We wanted to limit their opportunities and their scoring.
“In the second half we felt a little more comfortable. Going into the second half we told them to just have fun. For the seniors this was going to be their last time playing with their teammates. We wanted to end on a positive note.”
To get to the match against Oak Knoll, the Cougars defeated seventh-seeded Princeton Day, 6-0, on Nov. 5 in the Non-Public North quarterfinals. Temkin and senior Caroline Murphy had two goals each for MKA. Senior Natalie Yu and freshman Addie Goldstein added a goal each.