TURNER – The key ingredient of Thursday’s game plan for the Waterville field hockey team was toughness.

Don’t play soft and leave the finesse game on the bus was the theme for the day.

It worked.

The Purple Panthers used their physical approach to outmuscle the Leavitt Hornets for a 2-0 win.

“One of our focuses today was to play with more passion and intensity,” said Waterville coach Michelle Fowler. “We’re really tough to play when we get the momentum. When we play like (we did today), we’re a team to be reckoned with.”

For a nine-minute span midway in the second half, the Purple Panthers (6-2-3) attempted to add to their 1-0 lead. They hemmed the Hornets (5-7) deep in their own end and attacked with one offensive assault after another.

Hornet keeper Kristin Schrepper (13 saves) and a scrambling defense kept the Purple Panthers at bay until Ashley Miller cashed in. Miller collected a pass inside the circle from Shannon Burns and Sarah Thiboutot, carried the ball toward an opening on the right side and fired a shot into the far corner.

“I pulled it right,” said Miller. “I was trying to settle it. I didn’t see anyone open so I decided to take a shot on goal.”

“That was a key part of the game,” she added. “We needed to dominate them inside the circle and keep it from being a hit-and-run game.”

The nine minute stretch proved fatal for the Hornets.

“We couldn’t clear it,” said Leavitt coach Wanda Ward-MacLean. “We play man-to-man inside the circle. We have an inexperienced team and tend to ball- watch.”

Waterville’s Shelly Roberts capitalized on a penalty corner midway through the first half. After she directed the ball to the top of the circle she quickly made her way to the near post and banged the ball home from the crease area.

Despite the 1-0 score, the first half was played evenly with both teams earning multiple scoring chances.

Leavitt’s best opportunity came with just over eight minutes left in the half. Tiffany Poland battled her way out of the corner and sent a hard crossing pass to the far post. As Waterville keeper Ashley Poulin (7 saves) stretched her stance to kick the ball away, she lost her balance. No one, however, could connect with the ball as it trickled across the crease.

“That’s the story of our season,” said Ward-MacLean. “We had a ton of opportunities in the first half but we couldn’t get a stick on the ball.”