Gold Rush: Sweet To Repeat
12/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Dec. 10, 2003
By Jay Reddick
The bus pulled onto Wake Forest Drive and into a sea of white.
Toilet paper lined the trees along the road to Manchester Athletic Center. Some 200 revelers waited in the parking lot.
All waiting for the Wake Forest field hockey team, newly crowned NCAA champions, and their extra-special guest, Ben.
On the night of Nov. 23, Wake Forest was the place to be.
Earlier that day, however, the Deacons - and Ben - were in Amherst, Mass. The squad had avenged its only loss of the season by beating Duke in the ACC Tournament final, but now, Wake Forest would have to defeat the Blue Devils again, this time for a second straight NCAA title.
From the start of the game, the Deacons' dominance was clear. Katie Ackerman scored in the 11th minute off a Kelly Doton assist and again three minutes later off an assist by Kelly Wood.
Staked to a two-goal lead, goalie Katie Ridd and the Deacons defense held strong. Gracie Sorbello cut the margin in half off a penalty corner in the 42nd minute, but as it has all season, WFU did what was necessary to win.
"I thought we came out strong," junior Kelly Dostal told masslive.com. "Duke is a great opponent. We faced them several times during the season, so we wanted to try and get an early goal. I think Katie Ackerman's goal really set the tone for the game."
Championship celebrations are becoming old hat for these Deacons, but they are quite rare from a historical perspective. The national title was just the sixth in the history of the school; three wins by the men's golf team and a 1955 baseball championship preceded last year's field hockey title.
The Deacons are the first team to repeat as national field hockey champs since North Carolina from 1995-97.
"Our defense really held tough," coach Jennifer Averill said. "This was truly an accomplishment, and I'm so proud that the girls were able to do it."
Averill talked often in preseason about how WFU wasn't "defending" any championship, because this was a new year. But after 19 consecutive wins to close the 2002 season, the Deacons never missed a beat, winning 22 games and losing only once.
Doton earned her third All-American citation and became the first player in NCAA history to be named to the all-tournament team four times. Dostal, Ridd and Lucy Shaw joined Doton on the All-America squad.
That group of talent plowed through Boston College, Connecticut and Michigan, winning by a combined total of 9-1 and setting up the championship rematch.
All leading up to a celebratory plane flight home and then the party in the Manchester parking lot.
Ben might have been the most popular attraction at the party. For "Ben" was the team's nickname for the NCAA championship trophy, which made the trip back to Winston-Salem with the team.
But what did "Ben" mean? "Ben" there, done that?
For now, yes. Until next year.