GRANBY — Olivia Vassar hurled herself across the corner of the end zone and clasped the disc in her hands as her knees slid across the damp turf.

She exemplified the declaration the Four Rivers girls ultimate team made at halftime of Sunday’s Amherst Invitational Gx championship game against Northampton: the Otters wanted it more.

“I love to see that. Olivia dives like that all the time. It makes me so happy to see our players putting that in,” Four Rivers senior Eve Macek said.

The Otters prevailed 10-7 over the Blue Devils to win their first Amherst Ultimate championship, capturing the prestigious event’s title in their third visit and avenging a loss earlier in the regular season against Northampton. Vassar’s score pushed Four Rivers’ lead to 9-6 with only a handful of minutes remaining until the hard cap and ended a 2-0 Northampton burst to open the second half.

Four Rivers led the whole way after scoring the first few points and building a 4-1 advantage.

“The intensity of the defense is actually what did it,” Otters coach Dov Plotkin said. “We’re playing zone defense. There’s three people call the cup that cover the person with the disc, and their job is the most exhausting, and it’s also very intimidating.”

Macek factored in nine of Four Rivers’ 10 points with eight assists, and she scored the Otters’ first goal coming out of halftime. Sophia Slade (assist) grabbed two goals, as did Shealyn Garvin.

“It felt crazy. It meant a lot. I don’t think this has ever happened,” Macek said. “We’ve worked a lot on our teamwork and our trust in each other.”

The Otters went 6-0 over the weekend and outscored their opponents 73-17.

“It’s a very prestigious tournament, and we’re an incredibly small school, having that is a really big deal in itself,” Plotkin said.

Four Rivers’ boys team placed fifth in the Open Division 1 bracket. The Otters rallied from a two-goal hole late in the fifth-place game against Brooklyn Tech, and Caleb Bird threw it to Meir Dragon for the game winner. Four Rivers also bested Amherst’s junior varsity squad in the consolation bracket. 

The Northfield Mount Hermon girls team finished eighth in the Gx tournament.

Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.

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