NORTHVILLE – If there were ever a situation where one state championship seemed greater than 30 previous ones, this was it for the Ann Arbor Pioneer field hockey program. 

Over its first 45 years as a program, Pioneer won 30 state championships while the sport was sanctioned by the Michigan High School Field Hockey League. 

With this 46^th year for the Pioneers the first for field hockey with MHSAA sponsorship, they certainly had a weight of expectations as the team to beat with their storied history and fact they entered the postseason as the No. 1 overall seed. 

But none of that additional pressure slowed down Pioneer, which made history as the MHSAA’s inaugural Finals champion in field hockey with a 2-0 win over Southeastern Conference rival Dexter on Saturday at Tom Holzer Field. 

“I always tell the athletes that pressure, you can use it to your advantage,” said longtime Pioneer head coach Jane Nixon, who completed her 27th season as head coach. “It helps you focus, and it gives you energy. I never think of pressure as a bad thing, but as kind of a good thing.”

The biggest reason Pioneer (15-6-1) added to its championship collection was the strength of its defense. 

Pioneer and freshman goalie Mara Boullion didn’t give up a single goal during the entire MHSAA Tournament, and thwarted all 10 penalty corner opportunities Dexter earned during the championship game. 

Boullion stopped all seven shots from the Dreadnaughts (15-4-4). 

“It was just a lot of grit and a lot of heart,” Nixon said. “Just sticking with it and persevering through the hard stuff. Really proud of our defensive effort and our goalkeeping.”

Pioneer opened the scoring with 4:03 remaining in the first quarter on a goal by junior Zoe Shuchman.

Following a Pioneer penalty corner, there was a mad scramble in front of the Dexter goal, where Zoe Shuchman managed to get a strong enough piece of the ball to put it across the line and net. 

Pioneer went up 2-0 with 2:47 remaining in the third quarter on a Dexter turnover deep in its own territory. An errant pass was intercepted by Pioneer senior Maggie Lamb, who broke in all alone on the Dexter goal and put away the chance. 

It was her 10th goal of the season.

“We felt a lot (of pressure),” Lamb said of Pioneer’s tournament run. “We were also trying to go into it a game at a time and not thinking too far ahead. Just making sure we played our best game until we reached this ultimate end game.”

This was the third game of the season between Pioneer and Dexter. The teams played to a 1-1 tie on Sept. 15 before Pioneer earned a 1-0 win in the second game Sept. 22. 

Like Pioneer, Dexter also is a storied program, having won MHSFHL Division 2 state titles in 2022 and 2023 and five overall. 

Dexter was making its fourth-straight championship game appearance after losing in last year’s MHSFHL Division 2 final and had spurts throughout the game where it carried play.

Dexter ended up outshooting Pioneer, 9-7. Unfortunately for the Dreadnaughts, it couldn’t crack Pioneer’s stout defense. 

“Sometimes it’s just a matter of a lucky break,” said Dexter head coach Keely Tamer. “They’re a talented team, and I knew we were going to have to play hard to get the ball in. It just didn’t happen today. We have the talent to score. It just wasn’t there today.”

Click for the full box score. 

PHOTOS (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer's Maggie Lamb (7) and her teammates raise their championship trophy Saturday after clinching the first MHSAA Finals title in the sport. (Middle) Pioneer's Violet Soldan (10) prepares to move the ball ahead while Dexter's Claire Dubuque defends. (Below) Pioneer's Izzy Sutton (15). and Mara Buillon (35) defend their goal with Dexter's Allison St. Amour (9) and Kylie Marcinkowski working to find an opening.