Two of the more consistent Central New York field hockey programs will collide Saturday at 12 p.m. at Cicero-North Syracuse High school when Cazenovia of Section III meets Section IV champion Greene in the Class C regional finals.
Both schools enter the game with unbeaten marks, and each club, coincidentally, has won seven straight sectional championships. “We’ve never played them, but they’re very good,” said Greene coach Sue Carlin, who has faced nearly every quality field hockey program in the Class A and B ranks over the last decade. “(Cazenovia) is very similar to us. We saw them play New York Mills (on Tuesday). They pass it well, their midfield is strong...it’s going to be a tough battle.”
Greene (16-0), always a Class C school in size, treaded in the Class A and B waters exclusively since winning its first state championship nearly 20 years ago under program founder Nancy Bromley. Carlin, and the school, elected to move back to the Class C ranks this year in order to compete against like-sized schools.

That said, the Trojans beat every top school in Section IV this season, and would remain a threat for a state championship in any classification. Four players on this year’s roster are familiar with the path to a New York State championship. Seniors Emily Conroe, Jahna Driscoll, Colleen Dietrich, and Emma Anderson were part of the unbeaten 2009 state title team, and are among a cast of 10 seniors on the Trojans’ roster that is not only long on experience, but quite comfortable in the playoffs’ elimination format. “We have a lot of kids that have been there before, and I’m sure Caz has some kids that have been there, too, “Carlin said. “We’ll definitely rely on the experience, and hope that they can come up big.”
Cazenovia won the Section III Class C title game a week ago beating Holland Patent 2-0. Three days ago, in the C-D crossover, the Lakers scored four second-half goals to run away with a 4-0 win over New York Mills. Jessy Silfer had two goals for Caz, while Maggie Carpenter and Rachel Nourse added tallies. Much like Greene, Cazenovia has overwhelmed the opposition with plentiful scoring opportunities and a shots-on-goal margin of better than three-to-one.
With Greene winning its section title this past Friday, Carlin and her team were afforded the rare opportunity of a scouting trip, something that has not occurred in previous sectional title wins. “It just happened to work out for us this year, and it was definitely helpful,” Carlin said.
It is doubtful Cazenovia has met an opponent with the offensive firepower of the Trojans. Greene has outscored its 16 opponents by a combined 76-3, and the only team to score on it was Whitney Point. Driscoll, Conroe, Emily Gascon, Katherine Klecha, Tiffany Borst, Anderson, and others are all prime scoring threats for a balanced Trojans offense. Driscoll, the leading scorer the previous two years, has had a career-best year for assists, and had at least one goal and multiple assists in each of the past two playoff wins. “Jahna has matured into that type of player,” Carlin said of her scoring leader. “Everybody, at least in our section, knows that (Jahna) is a threat to score. They try to shut her down, and that has only led to more scoring opportunities for her teammates.”
Driscoll’s trust in her teammates’ abilities is a theme amongst her entire team, one that could lead to another state championship. “We have a lot of kids who can make plays for us, and they all know that,” Carlin said. “They are more apt to take chances because they know a teammate will cover for them.”