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NORTH ANDOVER — Andover field hockey coach Maureen Noone has never been a fan of penalty strokes as a method for deciding games. After Saturday’s heartbreaking Division 1 North finals loss on penalty strokes — for the second straight year to unbeaten and defending state champion Acton-Boxboro — Noone is even less of a fan. “Big games like this should be decided in overtime,” said Noone. “You’re putting a lot of pressure on a few girls. I’d rather see another overtime.” Another overtime probably would have been to Andover’s advantage the way it had been playing following the first half. Trailing 2-0 at halftime, the Golden Warriors stepped up their game big time in the second half, cutting their deficit to 2-1 with 11:03 to play on a Brenna Keefe goal after a flurry in front of the net. Then they tied it up with just 1:40 remaining on a penalty shot converted by Jillian Hughes. With the momentum on their side, the Warriors totally controlled the first 15-minute overtime, barely missing a goal on at least two opportunities, and nearly converting two penalty corners late in the second overtime. Andover dominated the final five minutes. Hughes and Caroline Curtin in particular shined in OT. After the two 15-minute overtimes, which are played 7 on 7, it went to penalty strokes. Curtin scored on Andover’s first attempt, but the Warriors then missed three in a row, two because of nice saves by A-B senior goalie Hayley Reierson, and the No. 1-seed Colonials converted three of four shots to seal the win and improve to 21-0. “She (Reierson) has been the heart and soul of this team so it was great to see that,” said A-B coach Mae Shoemaker, who has won four state titles in the last decade. “This was like watching instant replay because we were ahead last year, too, they came back and then we won on the penalty strokes. “I’m just so proud of these girls. After losing the two All-Americans to Michigan (Maggie Bettez and Leah Cardarelli), I didn’t know how we’d do this year, but the girls really came together.” It may have been deja vu for the Colonials, but it was far from pleasant for the Warriors. “This was tougher to take (than last year),” said Noone. “The girls showed so much character coming back and they really controlled the play. I thought in overtime we should have had another penalty shot and that could have made the difference.” On the positive side, the Warriors (19-2-1) only graduate four seniors while A-B has nine seniors on its roster. “We have a lot of good young players and they’re chomping on the bit to get in there,” said Noone. The future, the past One of the youngsters, sophomore Emma Farnham, played a particularly strong first half and classmate Hannah Littlewood was also impressive. Andover’s seniors completed a four-year record of 66-9-9. Over the last eight years, Andover field hockey is 149-12-12 with two state titles and five appearances in the Division 1 North championship game.

READING — Whether last year's triple overtime, penalty stroke loss in the Division 1 North Finals is still fresh in Andover's mind is anyone's guess, but what can't be denied is the familiar feeling coach Maureen Noone and her team have now that they're going back. "They have had returning as their goal the entire year," said Noone. "They are definitely excited. It was hard to keep regrouping during the game. The Golden Warriors left no doubt in Tuesday's 3-0 win over previously unbeaten Needham, dominating the North Semifinal matchup from the get-go to punch their ticket back to the regional finals. It only took sophomore forward Emma Farnham four minutes to get Andover on the board. Senior captain Tori Roche fired a shot on Needham keeper Ali Dugan that was turned away, but Farnham was in good position to clean up the rebound. Farnham added another goal midway through the first to give Andover a comfortable 2-0 lead at halftime, and Brenna Keefe put the game out of reach with another goal off a corner 10 minutes into the second. "She's done a good job for us all year," said Noone of Farnham. "The first goal definitely settles the team. You can take chances you might not have taken if you didn't have that one. So it really puts you in a nice place." The early goal put Needham in an unfamiliar positon. Andover may have entered the matchup with an impressive 18-1-1 record, but Needham came in without a single loss on the season. Andover goalie Megan Hartnett has now recorded three straight shutouts. The junior goalkeeper has kept a clean slate the entire postseason, and recieved high praise for keeping a potent Needham offense off the board. "She's awesome," said Noone. "She's been incredible. When we get into big games she always steps up, and she's done a fabulous job for us not only this year, but for the past two as well." Hartnett certainly had help. Senior caption Jillian Hughes was a constant pest for Needham attackers on the defensive end. Hughes led a defensive unit that did not allow the Rockets many good chances to fire at Hartnett. A defensive unit as strong as Andover's has helped the offense to tally 10 goals in three playoff games. "I think they've been capitalizing when they need to," said Noone. "We have a lot of versitile kids, and we have some really fast wings that have been stepping in and giving our starters a break. We have a lot of depth at that forward line." Andover now awaits the winner of Wednesday night's semifinal between Acton-Boxboro and Belmont.

Andover's field hockey team dominated play but had to settle for a 0-0 tie against Beverly Wednesday afternoon. Goalie Meg Hartnett only had to make one save for the Warriors (16-1-1).

Andover's field hockey team won a tough test against Chelmsford, 1-0. Rapidly improving Emma Farnham scored for the Warriors and Caroline Curtin, Jillian Hughes and Caileigh Reming all played exceptional defense. Meg Hartnett had a season-high five saves for the Warriors (16-1). Chelmsford lost for only the second time all year, both to Andover.

Tori Roche, who is usually Andover's high scorer, instead had four assists as the Warriors (15-1) blanked Central Catholic 7-0.  Dasie Peterson and Emma Farnham both scored twice for Andover.

Tori Roche continued her high-scoring season with four goals and an assist as the Andover field hockey team (14-1) rolled over Central Catholic 6-0. Emma Farnham had three assists for Andover.

Brenna Keefe had a huge day for the Andover field hockey team, scoring two goals and adding three assists to help the Warriors beat Methuen 6-0.

The Andover field hockey team faced down its biggest test of the season and passed with flying colors, handing Walpole its first loss of the season by a score of 4-1. Tori Roche had a hat trick to lead the Warriors, scoring two goals in the first 10 minutes to give Andover a 2-0 going into halftime, and then after the two teams traded goals early in the second half, she scored a third late to put the game away. Andover coach Maureen Noone said getting the lead early was key and allowed the Warriors to dictate the pace the rest of the way. Specifically, Andover was able to sub out its forward line frequently, which helped the Warriors stay fresh in the unexpectedly hot temperatures and tire out their Walpole counterparts. "Coming in they were confident but they still had a lot of respect for Walpole," Noone said. "They got there early, they were maybe a little anxious at first, but getting a goal seven minutes in really helped change the conversation." In addition to Roche's hat trick, Caroline Curtin had a goal and an assist, Jillian Hughes had two assists and Emma Farnham had one assist. Andover improves to 10-1 with the win and will host Methuen on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

North Andover field hockey scored first but Andover reeled off three straight (Tori Roche, Jilian Hughes, Darsie Peterson) for a 3-1 win. Caileigh Reming was brilliant with two defensive saves and backs Amanda Brosnan and Kate Gregory also shined in the win.

Emma Farnham moved a pass in front of the net to Brenna Keefe, who fought through a scrum and scored with 5:12 left in the game to give Andover a 1-0 victory over archrival Chelmsford. The Lions beat the Golden Warriors a season ago, ruining their unbeaten regular season.