Photo: Emma O’Donovan after scoring for Belmont High School.

In the past year, it seemed that Belmont High junior Emma O’Donovan had spent more time on crutches than on the ice or the turf.

Injured last fall, the Marauder forward on this season’s field hockey squad missed the last half of the field hockey and all of the girls’ ice hockey season where she was expected to be a key in Belmont’s first line offense.

And this fall season, O’Donovan was wearing a boot on her foot during preseason.

“I missed two and a half seasons and I just wanted to get out there and just run,” said O’Donovan after the season opener with Stoneham on Friday, Sept. 6.

And she did more than run; she scored a hat trick in the first 20 minutes and finished with four goals as the Marauders took it to host Stoneham, 10-0.

While she isn’t fully fit just yet – O’Donovan said it was hard playing games without the long-distance running done in the preseason – she said it was really good to get back with a lot of teammates “and get the game like intensity back up.”

O’Donovan was one of seven Marauders to get their names on the scoresheet (including sophomores Molly Dacey and Ellie McLaughlin) as Belmont was one-step ahead of the Spartans, despite the game being played on grass, the only location remaining without a turf field.

It was Belmont’s senior captains and returning Middlesex League all-stars Meaghan Noone and Emma Donahue on defense and midfielder Katie Guden (one goal and several assists) that dominate play at all corners of the pitch.

Junior Kendall Whalen and senior Molly Calkin each took a half in net to share the clean sheet.