GILROY – The quest for a Central Coast Section championship is
never easy, so it was no surprise the Branham Bruins field hockey
team gave it all they had against heavily favored Gilroy High in
the first round of the CCS playoffs Thursday in Gilroy.
”
Every team we play is a step up, but I think we were ready,
”
Mustangs junior tri-captain Dani Hemeon said.
A physical contest from start to finish ended with the No. 5
Mustangs holding down the fort in a 4-2 victory over the No. 12
Bruins.
GILROY – The quest for a Central Coast Section championship is never easy, so it was no surprise the Branham Bruins field hockey team gave it all they had against heavily favored Gilroy High in the first round of the CCS playoffs Thursday in Gilroy.
“Every team we play is a step up, but I think we were ready,” Mustangs junior tri-captain Dani Hemeon said.
A physical contest from start to finish ended with the No. 5 Mustangs holding down the fort in a 4-2 victory over the No. 12 Bruins.
“We had some awesome performances from a lot of players, but like coach Erin (Gemar) said we need to play better every game because obviously each game is going to get tougher,” Mustangs head coach Adam Gemar said.”
The Mustangs dictated play throughout much of the first half, scoring two goals within the first seven minutes of play.
Hemeon stick-handled around a Bruin at the 25-yard line, crossing up the defender who eventually fell to the ground. She continued with possession into the circle before dishing a soft pass to Emily Costa who found the back of the net to put GHS up 1-0.
After earning their second short corner of the game, resulting from a foul inside the circle, Alex Rose initiated the offensive set-play with a crisp pass to Hemeon who settled the ball and ripped a shot past Bruin goalie Maddy Davis, who never saw the ball as it slammed into the lower right corner of the net.
Davis did give the Mustangs fits despite letting four goals through, kicking away a number of close-range shots throughout the game.
“Their goalie was really good,” Gemar said. “They were tougher than we thought, that’s for sure.”
Seemingly complacent with the two-goal advantage, the Mustangs let the Bruins back in the game.
“I thought there were a bunch of fouls on us that happened because we didn’t talk,” Gemar said. “You think you have a team that is flawless but then you see the little mistakes that are there.”
The Bruins’ Ashley Martin snuck one past goalie Geralyn Moon with two minutes to play before the half to bring Branham within striking distance.
“It was huge for our confidence,” said Branham’s first-year head coach Brittney Paulsen Eich, who led the Bruins to their first CCS appearance since 1989. “I was impressed with the sportsmanship. This is the first team of high caliber that we have played who treated us with respect. I thought is was a clean and pretty game.”
Hemeon and the Mustangs didn’t let the slim lead last for long as she took a pass from tri-captain Elise Ogle – who returned to action after missing three games with an injury – and deposited the ball in the net with 1:20 showing on the clock before the break.
“That was the biggest goal for us,” Gemar said. “It would’ve been nice to get a few more.”
Hemeon scored her third of the game with 20 minutes to go in the second half to put the Mustangs up 4-1. The Bruins’ Gabby Jordan scored with 16 minutes left, but time became the enemy after that as the Mustangs defense tightened up for the final push.
The Leigh Longhorns await Gilroy in the quarterfinals. Leigh (12-2), the Santa Teresa Athletic League champions, earned a first-round bye and a No. 4-seed in this year’s draw.
“They are a good team,” Hemeon said. “They have good offensive players so we are going to have to make sure that our defense is tight.”
Saturday’s game is at Del Mar High School in San Jose and is scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m.
