Even with a chipped tooth and a cut to her chin from taking a stick up high late in the game, Shore's Maggie Lamb was not going to accept the thought of leaving the game near the end of what could potentially be the final game of her high school career.

After helping Shore win a state title as a freshman in 2015, she experienced the heartbreak of losing in the sectional final for the past two seasons. So when she was hurt with seven minutes left of a tie game in Saturday's Group 1 final, the senior made it clear that she wanted to return to the game as soon as possible.

“The other team had the ball and I was trying to play high pressure on her," Lamb said. "I guess her backswing and follow-through was a little bit high. My tooth was chipped and everything was like bleeding, but I didn’t really care. I wanted my last senior year moment to be on the field.”

Her teammates took notice of her toughness, and her immediate return to the game gave her squad the emotional boost it needed. In the end, it was one of her best friends on the team in Lily Santi that came through with the tie-breaking goal with 2:37 remaining, as Shore, No. 10 in the NJ.com Top 20, edged out No. 14 Haddonfield 2-1 for the Group 1 title on Saturday evening at Bordentown High.

"Maggie is literally one of my best friends," Santi said. "I’ve been playing with her for the past three years. It’s just crazy to see how far we’ve come together. This has been our dream since last year after we lost. We just wanted it so bad. Especially because she got hurt at the end of the game, we knew we had to come together and know that we lost one of our best players. We had to come through in the end and do it for her, really.”

The win gave Shore its 15th state title, which is fourth all-time amongst New Jersey programs, and denied Haddonfield of a three-peat, after it won the Group 1 title in 2016 and 2017.

It was a back-and-forth affair between the two sides, as each had its share of moments of dominance during the game. Santi scored the game's opening goal with 7:01 to go in the first half, as it managed to take a 1-0 lead going into halftime.

Despite the fact that it couldn't find a way to add onto its lead thanks to the performance of Haddonfield goalie Megan Maynes (seven saves), Shore held onto the lead for the majority of the second half, and its defense did a nice job of not allowing many high-danger opportunities.

“I think we just had a strong mindset," Lamb said of her team's defensive play. "We didn’t want anything in our 25. When it was in our 25, we wanted to get it out right away. Sticking to each other and sticking to our plan was the main reason (we won) and it worked.”

But with 10 minutes remaining, Haddonfield turned it into a brand new game as Caitlyn Tedeschi tipped a shot from outside the circle past Shore goalie Rachel Dwyer (four saves) to knot the score up at one.

With the adversity Shore faced not only by surrendering the game-tying goal- but with the injury to one of its best players in Lamb just minutes later- the Blue Devils found a way to come through in the end. The game-winner came off a corner insert from Emmalee Olsen to Santi, who lifted the ball in the air and into the back of the cage.

“It was inserted to me on the low on the flip side," Santi said of the game-winner. "The play is for me to take it in, beat the defender, and then lift it. I did exactly that and it worked, exactly what my coach asked of me.”

Santi added: “It’s honestly a dream come true. That might sound like a cliche but it’s such a dream come true. Going through the program that my whole family has been through and so many alumni who support us all the time, it’s just a dream come true.”

The win was even more gratifying for Shore's six-player senior class, led by Lamb and Olsen. It marked the second state title in four years for this group of seniors, and they will get to leave the program with at least a state title this season, as it awaits its seed for next week's Tournament of Champions.

“It’s probably the best feeling and it means so much to me," Lamb said. "We have our title back, we’re back together, this is the best team that has gone through Shore I think while I’ve been here. It’s such a good team and this is the best feeling ever.”
