LYNNFIELD — Legendary Montreal Canadiens hockey goaltender Jacques Plante once said, “Only a goalie can appreciate what a goalie goes through.”
Nobody knows that more than Lynnfield junior field hockey goalie, Ava O’Brien, both on and off the field.
O’Brien and her Pioneer teammates have a chance to rewrite the Lynnfield High field hockey history book Tuesday night in the state Division 2 semifinals against defending champion Dover-Sherborn at Braintree High (7).
A win will secure the team’s first Eastern Massachusetts championship and also punch the Pioneers’ ticket to this weekend’s state championship game, also a program first.
In the middle of the Pioneers’ magical run is O’Brien, an incredibly optimistic person who always sees the glass as half full … even when that glass is empty.
This from a young lady who didn’t even know if she would ever play field hockey again after learning in June of her freshman year that she has multiple sclerosis.
“It was finals week and I had been suffering from numbness in my legs and also had blurred vision and headaches,” she said. “It gradually got worse so I had an MRI, which showed the lesions. I got the diagnosis that day.
“I didn’t even know what MS was and I was in shock initially.”
Despite the diagnosis, the then-14-year-old put a positive spin on it.
“I was happy it wasn’t worse,” she said. “And relieved because I thought I had a brain tumor. But I did have a few of those ‘why me’ moments, especially when I had a relapse in August before sophomore year. It took awhile to adjust, but now I choose to be positive.”
Although she never played a single varsity minute until this season, O’Brien, with help from a tough-as-nails defense, has been nothing short of spectacular.
In the Pioneers’ 1-0 win over Manchester-Essex in the quarterfinals, a team the Pioneers had never beaten in the postseason, O’Brien made the save of the season when she stuffed a Hornet’s penalty-stroke shot in the second half.
But that was nothing compared to what happened next.
O’Brien logged another shutout in the Pioneers stunning 1-0 victory over perennial powerhouse Watertown, a team that had won 238 games and lost only three in 10 years. O’Brien had only five saves, but each was spectacular, including a highlight-reel worthy save when she laid flat out, then swatted the ball out of thin air while falling to the turf.
In the North final against Gloucester, O’Brien was again rock solid, especially in the later stages, to preserve the Pioneers’ 3-2 win and deliver Lynnfield’s first sectional title in19 years.
Pioneer coach Mamie Reardon said the team wouldn’t be where it is without O’Brien.
“She has had so much to go through and along with being a goalie, but maybe that’s why she’s strong and that’s the secret to how she keeps everyone else calm. To do what she does while having MS is just amazing.
“I mean, here is she against Watertown with these kids firing 80 mile-per-hour shots at her and she doesn’t flinch. It’s been a dream come true this season and due to her, she has made it so worth it. I never in a million years would have predicted this season.
“She has had a huge impact this year. Her growth has been immense and she has flourished. We are where we are because of some people and she most definitely is one of those people.”
O’Brien has learned to manage her symptoms with daily medication and short breaks when she feels her focus is off. She said she has experienced some symptoms during games, but she has learned to fight through them.
“It hasn’t happened often, but when it does, when I feel like my vision is getting blurred or a headache is coming on, I think it’s just my competitive instinct that takes over, as I know I have to stay positive,” O’Brien said.
For now, all that is on O’Brien’s mind is winning a state title.
“It’s been a crazy year and I never thought I would be in this position,” O’Brien said. “When you are a goalie, there is a lot of pressure, but you have to stay calm, focus and trust your teammates. I am so lucky to have such great teammates.”
“Her strength is she is so calm and confident and never gets flustered.She keeps the other kids calm,” said Reardon. “I don’t know how she does it. I wish she could help keep me calm.”