Caroline O’Sullivan ’10 scored on a cross from Courtney Macdonald ’11 to take the lead with only 15 minutes left in the game as Andover beat Nobles in the first round of postseason play on Wednesday.
After the game, O’Sullivan said, “Scoring was amazing. But the win was a result of the play of the entire team, not just my goal.”
Playing on its home field under the lights after a last minute location change, Andover prepared to take on number two seed Nobles. There was passion from fans, coaches and players on the bench, all of them making the already emotional quarterfinal game so much more exciting.
Earlier this season, Andover fell to Nobles in its only loss of the season. Nobles also knocked the team out of the playoffs during the semifinals last season, as Andover lost on penalty kicks. “We were determined to win this time around, and we kept fighting,” said Co-Captain Katherine Sherrill ’10.
Nobles brought extremely talented players, but Andover was not to be outmatched.
Knowing that Nobles would be strong offensively, Andover organized a solid defense, which was impenetrable in this game. Sherrill, Anna Fang ’10, Piper Curtis ’13, Kira Wyckoff ’11, Julia Rafferty ’10 and Macdonald all thwarted any scoring opportunities for Nobles.
Farrell was also invaluable in net for Andover.
Rafferty said, “They threw a lot at us and made a lot of short, quick passes, but we each worked extremely hard to stop them. Everyone dropped back to help out, so it became a team effort to protect our net.”
Andover’s depth gave them lots of room to make changes in its lineup, which proved very effective in this game.
“Everyone played their role perfectly and did everything they had to do plus some,” said Sherrill.
With crisp passes, Andover’s offense stepped up against Nobles. Amanda Brisco ’10 stood out to her teammates with her aggressive play.
“We all played hard, and it was so encouraging to see your teammate next to you going all out too,” said Rafferty.
This weekend, Andover will play Brooks in the semifinals. Andover tied Brooks earlier in the season, and the team is looking to come home with a win. “It will be a tough game, but we are really confident that if we play the way we did against Nobles, then we should definitely win,” said Sherrill.
This week, Andover will have grueling practices to prepare for this highly anticipated matchup.
Ambika Krishnamachar ’11 said, “We will play more offensively than in our Nobles game, and we will be looking to score more goals.”
Rafferty said, “We know how they play, and we can definitely play well against them, we just need to bring the same attitude we had against Nobles.”
These last few games are important to the Seniors, as they have lad a team that has really come together this season.
“You can sense it even on the bench and at practice, everyone wants to work hard and push their teammates for the big victory,“ said Sherrill.
Farrell said, “Being a Senior, it makes me want to win the championship even more.”
