Andover Field Hockey finished its 2022 season as New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Championship semifinalists.
Captain Shea Freda ’24 is committed to Boston University to continue her field hockey career.
With the addition of new, dynamic lowerclassmen, Andover Field Hockey dominated in its first scrimmage of the season against Rivers. Although the game was cut short due to rainy conditions, the team’s 8-0 victory shows promise for the upcoming season.
Despite facing numerous practice cancellations and location changes throughout the week due to inclement weather, the team exemplified strong chemistry in its scrimmage, according to Captain Shea Freda ’24. Freda noted the new teammates that excelled in their debut.
“We had a couple of [Juniors] that ended up scoring goals… Our [Juniors] were great, and considering it was their first time getting out on the varsity field, it was pretty awesome to see them be in their element and have a cool moment. I just think we didn’t have many expectations going into it so we were like, ‘Alright, let’s see how this goes.’ It was fun to see us all playing together and how we meshed,” said Freda.
The team will be testing a new formation this season. Freda emphasized that the team’s success is reliant on how it adapts to the formation change and how well players communicate with each other.
“Our main point of focus is going to be our positioning on the field… [We] really just want to get people to where they want to be and make sure that everyone’s confident [about] where they are on the field. [We will be] working on our communication especially because in a time where you’re all kind of figuring out stuff together, it’s really important that on the field we’re able to talk to each other,” said Freda.
Josephine Sarno ’26 described the uplifting support provided by the upperclassmen during the scrimmage. Sarno attributed the team’s success and strength to the connections they formed with each other throughout the five-day preseason period leading up to the start of school.
“As a team, I think everyone kind of stood out because we all just have that really good team chemistry, but I mean our captain and all the upperclassmen on our team, I think they just really stepped up and helped everyone else out [to] get in the flow of the game,” said Sarno.
Andover once again holds hopes of claiming the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Champion title in the postseason. In the 2022 season, however, the team fell short in fulfilling its goal, ending its championship run in the semifinal round.
“This program has been so successful in the past, [and] we’re always striving to win another NEPSAC title, so I’d say that that is kind of the big goal. But we really like to focus on the small wins every single day, whether it’s a drill going really well at practice or winning a game. Every single game is important to us… I think we’ll be in good shape. We look like a really talented group of girls,” said Freda.
Andover Field Hockey will face Thayer in its home opener on Saturday.
