Against NMH, Andover was able to get off to a quick start and take control of the game, according to Kiera Suh ’22.
“25 seconds into the game, the forwards and mids worked to earn us a corner. And after that, we were able to keep it in the circle until Anna Bargman [’21] [scored],” said Suh.
Coach Martha Fenton ’83 added, “I think that [we] came out hard. We had a shot in the corner in the first twenty seconds of the game which is pretty unusual in field hockey. I think right from the start the team was ready to go. I think that whoever was on the sidelines was bringing great energy and I think that always makes the kids on the field play harder.”
The team fell to Middlesex last week, and, according to Coach Kate Dolan and Coach Fenton, the team was able to bounce back convincingly.
“The last two games have been a stark contrast to one another – we had a 0-1 loss to Middlesex last Wednesday and then a 9-1 win over NMH on Saturday,” wrote Dolan in an email to The Phillipian.
Fenton said, “I think we had a really tough loss last week to Middlesex, and the game before that— we barely won it. I think it was a turning point, whether the team was either going to fall apart [or] come together. I think that [Captain] Carly [Kreytak ’20] orchestrated a couple of things for the team that gave people space to talk and I think she worked really hard on the team [aspect] in the last week and I think it showed on Saturday.”
According to Kreytak, the win against NMH served as a big confidence booster for the whole team.
“Everyone was passing and communicating better than I had [ever] previously seen,” said Kreytak. “[It] was amazing for our confidence and the score really shows how we [were] able to put the pieces together and connect as a team. I think it was also one of the first times we gelled well as a team.”
Against BB&N on Wednesday, Andover carried this momentum, managing to get 20 corners in the game.
“We were really persistent on defense and in the offensive circle. When the ball started moving into our defensive end, everyone got back to recover. In the circle, we continued to try different variations of passes and shots, as they had a really strong goalie,” said Suh.
The team looks to face Deerfield away on Sunday.
