MONROE — Sixty minutes of 11 on 11 field hockey yielded no scoring. However, just 22 seconds of 7 versus 7 overtime play is all it took for Newtown High School’s field hockey team to celebrate a dramatic 1-0 win at Masuk High on September 22.

Izzy Butler took a pass from Reagan Schoen and deposited the ball into the back of the cage to give the Nighthawks their second thrilling finish of a victory this season; Newtown scored with just three seconds left in regulation to beat Trumbull 2-1 in the season opener. Even had that game gone into overtime, Coach Ellen Goyda would have liked her team’s chances. She was ultraconfident going into reduced-player extra time at Masuk, that’s for sure.

“I would bet my house on us in overtime,” Goyda said, before quickly adding, “I hope that doesn’t come back to bite me. I’m confident in our skill.”

For Butler, who also had the decisive goal against Trumbull, finding the cage to get the Hawks out of Monroe with a win was as much relieving as it was thrilling.

“It was a relief. It was a lot of stress the entire game being zero-zero,” Butler said.

Schoen said the familiarity of team members on the field in OT, including Butler and herself, coupled with more space on the field in the 7 on 7 scenario, paid off for the Nighthawks.

“We’ve been playing together since freshman year. It’s a lot of chemistry,” Schoen said. “And [in overtime] it’s less crowded.”

Goyda was pleased with the overall effort.

“I’m proud of the kids — they didn’t give up,” the coach said.

Defender Maggie LaBanca made a diving play to prevent a Masuk goal and help goaltender Cailyn Sullivan (two saves) earn the shutout. Shannon Kelleher, Summer Harrell, Morgan Melillo, and Maddy Twitchell were others with standout efforts, Newtown’s coaching staff said.

The Nighthawks blanked visiting New Fairfield 4-0 two days later. Butler, Melillo, Schoen, and Kelleher all scored. Butler, Melillo, and Katelyn Zaniewski all had assists, and the defense stood tall to keep the Rebels off the scoreboard.

Newtown made it three consecutive shutouts in a 2-0 blanking of host New Milford on September 27. New Milford won the South-West Conference North Division championship last fall. Sullivan made four stops to hang another zero.

In the first quarter, Schoen got Newtown on the board, scoring off a cross from Butler. Twitchell blasted a shot from the top of the circle that Harrell redirected home in the second quarter.

Twitchell, Kelleher, and Zaniewski put in a phenomenal effort in the midfield continually supporting the Nighthawk offense, Goyda said. “Lexi Bisset, Maggie LaBanca, and Nella Walsh played great defense, preventing New Milford from penetrating. Everybody stepped it up today knowing that they can never let their guard down against New Milford,” Goyda added.

Despite the outcome, Goyda saw room for improvement.

“We were awarded 12 penalty corners and only scored two goals — we really need to convert on more of those. We will definitely be working on that tomorrow at practice before we face Bethel on Wednesday,” she said.

Following the Bethel game (check out the October 8 print edition of The Bee for coverage), the Nighthawks go back out of the conference to take on Branford which visits Blue & Gold Stadium on Saturday, October 2; the game is set for 11:30 am.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.