Charlie Breitrose
The Raiders celebrate the late goal by freshman Taylor Lambo, which proved to be the game winner against Manchester-Essex in the North Final. Tuesday, the Raiders face Dennis-Yarmouth in the State Semifinal.
Once again, the Watertown High School field hockey team is back in the state semifinal, and for the second straight year they face a tough Dennis-Yarmouth.
Tuesday night’s matchup pits two unbeaten squads. The Raiders come in as North Champs with a record of 20-0-1, while the Dolphins — champions of the South — carry a record of 18-0-3.
Watertown won its 11th straight North Section title on Saturday, and the team seeks its 10th straight MIAA Div. 2 State Championship. The road has not been as easy as past years. After coasting to multi-goal victories in the first two rounds of the State Tournament, the Raiders needed double overtime to defeat Lynnfield, 2-1, in the North semifinal with the winning goal scored by senior Catherine Connor.
On Saturday, Watertown faced undefeated Manchester-Essex and pulled out a 1-0 victory thanks to a goal from freshman Taylor Lambo. For much of the game in North Andover, however, the Raiders struggled to find any offense.
Dennis-Yarmouth had no trouble scoring in its section final. The Dolphins defeated Cohasset 6-0 on Saturday, and got goals from five different players, including two from freshman Kayla McGaffigan, according to the Boston Herald report. McGaffigan also scored four goals in D-Y’s 6-0 win over Sandwich in the South semifinal.
The State Semifinal begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday night at Braintree High School. Follow Watertown News’ Twitter feed (@WatertownMANews) for live updates.