The state’s second scorer, Caroline Rotteveel of Lawrence, scored two minutes into overtime to stave off a furious Roxbury attempt as the 6-seeded Cards beat the 11-seeded Gaels 3 -2 in a first round game in North Jersey. , Group 3 sectional tournament in Lawrence on Tuesday.

The win propels Lawrence into the sectional quarterfinals Thursday at No. 3 seed Chatham, a 4-0 winner over No. 14 seed Middletown North.

With the two teams playing seven-on-seven field hockey in the first overtime, Rotteveel put together a long pitch hit by Peyton Valentino that had deflected off a stick from Roxbury defenders. From there, she got to work, dodging defenders and firing a backhand shot past the goalie to complete a three-goal Lawrence comeback.

“It came to me at the rim,” Rotteveel said of his long shot. “I was at the top of the circle. I got it and kept going to the goal and used my backhand.

“Overtime is really interesting because it’s more difficult because there are fewer girls on the pitch but it’s also easier in a way because I have more space. I have fewer defenders on me. And once I have the ball in the circle, it’s like I have the ability to score. Nobody’s going to stop me. It’s obviously nerve-wracking to go there, but once I’m there and once overtime starts, I’m ready to go.

Lawrence coach Megan Errico showed no surprise regarding Rotteveel’s clutch, overtime play and expressed confidence that once her team’s leading scorer had some d If there was room to move, she would throw the decisive shot.

“I knew as soon as Peyton hit the ball there and it didn’t come out and she touched it, I knew it was the end,” Errico said. “Because they are a strong team but we had to get through their defense, and we were able to. You just had to maintain possession. And we didn’t keep the ball in the first half. That was my big halftime speech. “If you maintain possession, you can win this game.” And we did it.

Errico had to give the speech to his troops at halftime because Roxbury got off the bus smoking. The Gaels dominated possession throughout the first half, bottling up Lawrence as he attempted to clear or go through transition.

Meanwhile, Roxbury executed crisp, precise passes through the midfield as senior midfielder Ayla Hart worked the right sideline and repeatedly served sophomore forward Avianna Zanni, who l took charge for the attack.

As a result, Lawrence only had two shots on goal in the first half, both coming in bursts late in the first period. The Roxbury defense pushed them both back and got a huge defensive stop from Ava Pennisi on Rotteveel’s second shot.

From the opening of the second quarter, Roxbury kept the pressure on the Cardinal cage. At 9:00, Zanni and Julia Katz took consecutive shots from close range toward the goal, but were denied by two saves from Lawrence goalkeeper Tess Adolf.

But soon after, Amanda Pieklo finally put one in the cage, giving the Gaels a 1-0 lead. They doubled the lead before the end of the half, as Carlee Contillo scored with just 1:19 left in the second period after receiving a pass from Brooke Franetovich.

Lawrence was dealing with it, but whatever Errico said to his team during intermission seemed to have the desired effect.

The Cardinals came out in the third period turning the tables on Roxbury, hitting the visitors’ cage. After making just two shots in the first half, Lawrence fired six toward the Gaels goal, hitting two to tie the game.

The first came when Lawrence attacked on the rebound in front of the cage. Rotteveel had a shot that was blocked by Roxbury goalkeeper Vanessa Pennella to start the burst and, after the ball was sent to the Cards’ Kayla Durling, Durling fired a shot across the cage that was again deflected by Pennella. But Rotteveel was on top of the rebound, firing it into the net to bring Lawrence within one, 2-1, with 8:39 left in the third quarter.

A little over a minute later, Pennella was under duress again, but she blocked two shots to repel the threat. It was only a temporary reprieve, however, as Lawrence scored on a corner kick with a minute left in the period to tie the game 2-2 heading into the final 15 minutes of regulation.

It was Valentino who delivered the equalizing blow, taking over at the top of the circle and drilling a missile that exploded into the cage untouched.

“All we did was work on rebounding,” Errico said of his team’s ability to clean up in front of the cage. “Our mids aren’t always where they should be and we said, ‘We have to force our rebounds and you have to get them and return them immediately. It worked for us today.

“And then Peyton’s bombshell. We tried all season to make it work. Sometimes she gets nervous when the defender comes at her, but we changed (the corner play) a little bit last week. And it worked for her. His successes are simply unreal.

Lawrence kept up the pressure in the final period and could have finished the game in regulation if not for a defensive stop by Pieklo, who moved to the left of goalkeeper Pennella to deal with a Rotteveel shot.

Roxbury would finally break free and head deep into the Lawrence side with four minutes remaining in normal time and Gael midfielder Breanna McGowan would fire on goal. Lawrence goalkeeper Tess Adolf made her first save of the second half to stop the goal, but it wouldn’t be her last. Both teams finished regulation at a furious pace, making repeated long runs down the field to try to break the deadlock.

But that would be Rotteveel’s job and he would only need 2:05 of the first overtime to get there.

While Roxbury missed its surprise attempt, Gaels coach Kate Williams felt her young team had made great strides this season.

“Obviously, it’s not the outcome we wanted,” Williams said after the loss. “I think we missed some opportunities: one-on-ones with the goalkeepers, missed post chances. But they learn a lot from their mistakes. I can see them making the adjustments.

“The first half was definitely better for us. We have worked to stay consistent and that comes with experience. I only have four seniors, with very little college experience. They worked hard all year. A lot of them play year-round and are really starting to connect. More than I have seen in the last 12 years of my participation in the program. So I think this season is a step in the right direction, even with a winning record. I’m proud of them for making it this far.

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Michael Holcombe can be contacted at [email protected]