Andover: 4, Dexter Southfield: 2
After a 15-0 victory in its scrimmage against Andover High School (Andover High) on December 2, Andover Girls Hockey traveled to Dexter Southfield (Dexter) on Friday, earning a win in its first official game of the season.
Head Coach Martha Fenton ’83 compared the team’s scrimmage against Andover High to the first official game of Girls Hockey’s season. The score on Friday was far closer than the score of the scrimmage, and according to Fenton, it provided an opportunity for coaches and players to recognize what the team will need to improve upon as it begins its season.
Fenton said, “Our game against Dexter [Southfield] was a much more even contest than our scrimmage against Andover High. Southfield is a young and talented team, and it was a great opportunity for us to see what we need to work on.”
Manager Luca Masters ’25 described the atmosphere of the team’s first away game. With a lack of a student section in Andover’s favor, Masters noted that the parents who came to watch made filled in for the lack of students.
Masters said, “There was no support really from the students because we were away. But, with all the parents there, it really made a wholesome environment. Every time there was a shot…the support of the parents made it so much more wholesome and meaningful than students who may not know what exactly is going on.”
Molly Boyle ’25 described what Andover has been working on recently in practices, highlighting how the team’s focus has mainly been on systems, such as the four-check, the neutral, the offensive zone, and a power plant penalty kill. Boyle also pointed out various strengths of the team, including its’ high speed, and an encouraging environment.
“We play super fast, and that led us to [be able to] have a lot of scoring opportunities. We also were super supportive of each other, which helped us a lot throughout the game… We’ve been working a lot on systems, like the four-check, and the neutral zone, and offensive zone, as well as the plays on the power plant penalty kill,” said Boyle.
According to Fenton, the team’s competitive spirit has been a strength thus far in its season, and she believes it will continue to be crucial moving forward. With that being said, Fenton found that the team still needs to work on positioning and communication as the season progresses.
“This team loves to play, and loves to compete… At this point in the season, we are still working on our communication and our positioning. We definitely have a ways to go with both, particularly in the defensive zone,” said Fenton.
On Thursday and Friday, Girls Hockey is participating in the Patsy K. Odden Invitational tournament.
