Cape hockey sniped and skyped 2-1 at Dover
The Cape field hockey team got sniped and skyped in the season opener at Dover Sept. 12 on a picture-perfect night at Senators Stadium, losing 2-1. The Vikings walked off two-by-two into a raucous, celebrating student section, who were holding up car keys to signal, “Have a nice trip home, Cape!”
Cape was 8-0 versus Dover in the previous eight games against the Senators going back to the 2010 season, with a tilted 43-1 goal differential, including seven shutouts.
Coach Denise Kimbro was smothered by fans as she walked off the field, getting hugs from hockey dads and talking by Skype to phone images, telling one happy former player, “We beat Cape! Can you believe it?”
The storyline was more improbable when Kimbro revealed that her starting goalie stayed home sick, so two junior varsity players with no experience played the position and combined for the victory.
“They were amazing, and our defense worked extra hard to protect them,” Kimbro said.
Those goalies - sophomore Kyra Woodard, who played half of the JV game, and freshman Regan Torbert - weren’t even on the varsity roster. Cape rocked the Dover junior varsity squad 6-1.
Torbert plays goalie in lacrosse and plays in the Eastern Shore Lacrosse League, but had never been in the cage for a hockey game. Her dad, Eric Torbert, is the former athletic director at Dover, and her grandfather, Kevin Charles, is the retired DIAA executive director.
“That was an emotional second half for a grandfather,” Charles said after the game in a subdued tone as he was popping out of his skin. “I see the game ball out on the field. I’m going to go get it.”
Dover scored both of its goals off penalty corners, the first 7:31 into the game by Aimee Petitdemange and the other early in the second half at 25:18 by Jacarra Jackson.
Jackie Cannon scored for Cape with 25:18 left in the game, but the Vikings fumbled through 11 corners during the game, unable to get off a good shot.
The Senators outshot Cape 9-8.
Dover will play at Milford, Thursday, Sept. 14, while Cape will host Laurel Tuesday, Sept. 19, before dealing with Delmar on the road Thursday, Sept. 21.
Notes: Cape had won 100 games in a row in Delaware, winning five straight state championships in the process, before closing the 2016 season with a loss at Tower Hill. They then opened the 2017 season with a loss at Dover.
“It’s OK for things to go wrong in September to know what we need to fix if we want to play on the last day of the season,” said coach Kate Austin. “Dover brought out our weaknesses, and now we have to focus on those as we move forward. We saw moments of good hockey; we just ran out of time.”
