With the game tied 0-0 in the second half, Jackie McCarthy ’19 scored the deciding goal to defeat St. Mark’s on Wednesday. This performance by Andover Field Hockey followed a 3-0 win away at Rivers on Saturday.
“We had one goal, but we probably should have had a lot more. It was a little bit too close of a game that felt pretty dominated by us. [Jackie scored] a really awesome goal. She inserted on the corner — she’s usually defense — and then was by the post and got a rebound,” said Lily Rademacher ’21.
According to Rademacher, the team’s energy going into the game improved since its scrimmage against Rivers.
Rademacher said, “We felt really good [going into the game after the scrimmage against Rivers]. I think we thought it was going to go better than it did, because last year we beat Rivers by more than we did this year.”
She continued, “Our energy hasn’t been amazing in scrimmages, and we’ve been trying to focus on that and trying to make sure that we improve, so I think today just goes to show that you can’t hope you’re going to improve. You have to take real, concrete steps towards that… [It’s] being a difference, not just hoping that there’s a difference.”
On Wednesday, the team gained composure in the second half to win against St. Mark’s, according to Emily Batchelor ’19.
“The game was pretty evenly matched. I think we definitely played better in the second half because we scored the goal in the second half. I think what helped is that we were more organized and executing all of the things that we practiced,” said Batchelor. “In the first half, everyone was trying to do everything at once, and we weren’t really thinking about our game-plan. But in the second half we came together as a team and were able to play better as a unit, and that worked to our advantage against St. Mark’s.”
The team’s main goal for its upcoming game against Thayer is to communicate more often in order to achieve better unity as a team, according to Anna Bargman ’21 and Batchelor.
“Some feedback [we received] was being more aware of how much time is left in the game to be smarter about our choices and also communicating more on the field and off the field. We will keep working on improving communication, which will be key,” wrote Bargman in an email to The Phillipian.
Batchelor said, “Last year, I think [Thayer] was pretty good. But again, every team we play is pretty good, so we’re not going to go into it thinking, ‘We’re going to take this game.’ For the next game we have to — similar to what we did in the second half against St. Mark’s — work as a team, make sure we’re communicating and executing the things we’ve practiced, like using the full width of the field, getting shots off when we have corners, and playing good defense. Playing good defense is everyone playing in their position; everyone’s telling each other where everyone is.”
Batchelor continued, “When we do communicate and when we’re letting each other know where we are and when we’re open, we definitely play much better, and we play more as a unit. It’s more cohesive, and everything flows really well.”
Andover will play Thayer away this Saturday.
