Eastern wins 12th-straight state title with 2-0 win over Bridgewater-Raritan

TOMS RIVER, N.J. - Eastern has won state titles with dominant play.

The Vikings have won state titles with dazzling play.

They won this state title with determined play.

Eastern's field hockey dynasty found another way to win another state championship Sunday at Toms River East.

The Vikings were persistent and consistent through 45 pressured-packed, scoreless minutes before finally breaking through for a 2-0 victory over Bridgewater-Raritan in the Group 4 championship game.

"It was definitely stressful and nerve-racking," said Eastern senior defender Brittany Evangelisti, who played a strong all-around game and scored the Vikings' second goal. "We just had to overcome it. We had to just keep pushing."

The victory secured Eastern's 12th consecutive state title, a national record. The Vikings have won the Group 4 title every season under coach Danyle Heilig, who took over the program in 1999.

"Sometimes, I think back to how young these girls were when this streak started and it amazes me," said Heilig, who has a 283-7-4 record in 12 seasons at Eastern. "It's different and amazing and special every year."

Eastern (25-0) will be the No. 1 seed in the Tournament of Champions, which begins Wednesday.

Unlike most of Heilig's teams, the Vikings were relatively inexperienced this season, with just two seniors - Evangelisti and forward Cori Allen, who assisted on both goals - and two juniors in the regular lineup.

Heilig said she sensed some nervous jitters from her younger players through the first half.

"This was the first time for a lot of these kids," Heilig said. "I think they needed to get through that. Once we developed some momentum, you could see it was going to happen."

Eastern needed a strong game from junior goalie Alana Barry, who made six saves, and some clutch defensive work from Evangelisti to keep the score at 0-0 as Bridgewater-Raritan generated a few good scoring chances.

At the other end, Eastern was unable to convert off its first 13 corners through the midway point of the second half.

"We're kind of good under pressure," Allen said. "At halftime, we took a deep breath and said, 'OK, let's play our game.' "

The Vikings finally scored when sophomore midfielder Carly Celkos took an insert from Allen and drove a blast that kicked off a Bridgewater-Raritan stick and into the goal with 14 minutes, 51 seconds remaining in the second half.

Evangelisti added an insurance goal with a little less than four minutes to play in the same fashion, taking an insert from Allen and blasting a shot into the goal.

"In August, I never would have believed this team would be undefeated," Heilig said. "They have amazed me with the way they've handled the pressure."

Bridgewater-Raritan 0 0 - 0

Eastern 0 2 - 2

Goals: Carly Celkos, Brittany Evangelisti.

Saves: BR-Christen Piersanti, 9; E-Alana Barry, 6.