MANCHESTER — The old adage that defense wins championships can apparently be applied to field hockey as well.

At least that's what Manchester Essex hopes after the Hornets defeated Bishop Fenwick 1-0 yesterday afternoon in the Division 2 North quarterfinals of the state tournament at Ed Field Field in Manchester.

The top-seeded Hornets (19-0-1) dominated time of possession but their high-scoring offense was held to just the one goal by the No. 8 Crusaders (13-6-1). The goal came on a second-half strike from junior midfielder Lizzy Ball.

The Hornets now advance to face the winner of No. 4 Belmont and No. 5 Marblehead, who play tomorrow afternoon. The Division 2 North semifinal date is TBA but it will be at Andover High most likely either Tuesday and Wednesday.

"We pulled it off," said Manchester Essex head coach Pam Grant. "The defense did a great job: Caroline Moore, Patty Wright and Hillary Doucette filled in for a little bit and it worked out nicely."

It was a tough result for a talented Fenwick squad that had beaten Tewksbury 3-1 in the first round.

"They outshot us and they had a lot of corners and offensive opportunities," said Crusaders head coach Marybeth Mahoney. "We didn't have quite as many chances and we didn't finish which bit us in the end."

For most of the first half, the ball seemed to be in the Fenwick defensive zone as Manchester Essex senior stars Amelia Cohen and Amelia Burke continually beat multiple defenders.

In the 19th minute, Burke's shot went past Crusaders senior goalie Casey Landry (10 saves) but a Bishop Fenwick defender stationed perfectly on the goal line was able to knock it away. Cohen followed it up with a shot that skidded wide of the net.

At the half it was scoreless but that was misleading as the Hornets led 5-0 in corners and Landry had to make five saves while Manchester Essex junior goalie Vicki Grimes (2 saves) didn't have a stop in the first 30 minutes.

Bishop Fenwick started out the second half playing some of its best field hockey of the day as it had an extended possession in the Hornets' defensive zone.

Manchester Essex junior Kyle Marsh almost broke the tie with a hard turnaround shot in the 37th minute that Landry kicked away. A few minutes later a shot by Burke was stopped and went out of bounds for a corner. Manchester Essex finally cashed in as Burke hit a short corner to Ball who wound up and took a hard shot from a tough angle that deflected by Landry and into the net.

The goal, which turned out to be the game-winner, was especially memorable for Ball since it was the first of the season for her.

"I meant to hit it flat on the ground but somehow it didn't," she said. "It deflected off one of their players. I usually assist on goals cause I play middie."

Bishop Fenwick nearly tied it two minutes later but Grimes came through with a big kick save. On the other side, Landry kept her team in it with two saves.

Late in the game, Burke went down with an injury after the ball drilled her right on the leg. The leading scorer in the Cape Ann League was shaken up but the time off before the next contest should help her recover.

As Grant explained: "it hit her in the leg, it didn't get the shin guard. She's icing it, we think she'll be fine."

In the chaotic last few minutes, Marsh did a good job keeping the ball away from Fenwick as the Crusaders sent more players upfield for the tying goal.

When the final whistle sounded, the Hornets still led 1-0, which is all that matters in the state tournament. Survive and advance.