This past Wednesday, the Girls Varsity Field Hockey team defeated Milton Academy, marking its fifth victory so far this season. In the first few minutes, Andover had almost exclusive possession. Even when Milton regained possession, it had a hard time breaking through the midfield barrier, and Andover would once again get control. Taking advantage on this opportunity, Andover’s Captain Megan Montecalvo ’06 scored after a scuffle around the net. Milton was far from giving up. Almost immediately following the goal, control of the game switched hands. Milton began to take charge of the game, playing extremely aggressively, but the Andover defense really stepped up to the plate. Led by Captain Jevan Jammal ’06 and Alyssa Hill ’06, the defense countered the recently awakened Milton offense with intensity. However, the defense had a weak moment, and seizing this chance, Milton scored its first and only goal of the game. Milton had many other scoring opportunities closely following its goal, but Goalie Ale Moss ’07 prevented any more damage, making multiple fantastic saves. However, the rest of the half was not very strong for either Milton or Andover. Frantic play from both teams led to multiple penalties and many corners, none of which yielded a goal. The half ended with the score tied at 1-1. Andover came out after halftime rested and ready to play. The midfield and offense worked together, passing well and forcing the Milton defense to work harder. The Andover offense prevailed as Whitney Annicelli ’06, assisted by Lindsey Moramarco ’06, scored her first goal of the season early in the second half. Andover did not let up this pressure. Ali Zindman ’07 led the team and displayed her usual hustle and hard work, intimidating Milton. The game became more dangerous as Milton became more anxious, and penalties abounded. Particularly problematic were Milton’s uncontrolled drives, which were illegally high off the ground. At one point, Arielle Filiberti ’07 was hit in the shoulder by one of these powerful drives, but she bravely took the hit and continued to play. Andover did not back down but rather took advantage of Milton’s weakness. Milton penalties brought Andover into a situation where they had three corner opportunities in a row, and on the third Megan Shea ’07 scored decisively. The Milton goalie barely attempted to stop the hard shot. Kristen MacDonald ’07 said, “I think that once we scored our last goal we definitely kept up the intensity.” For the last five minutes of the half, Milton barely touched the ball and Andover controlled the game. Captain Montecalvo led her team to this victory as she not only scored the first goal, but played an exceptionally fierce game throughout.
