Field Hockey ejected from playoffs by Whitman

OCT 25, WALT WHITMAN HIGH SCHOOL --- The varsity field hockey team ended their season in the first round of playoffs tonight with a 2-0 shut-out loss to Walt Whitman High School this evening. A skillful Whitman goalkeeper prevented powerful Blazer shots from entering the cage, bringing their final record to 5-8.

According to junior Carly Vieira, the Blazers were doing everything right, but the Vikings' goalie, who totaled six saves on the night, was unrelenting. "Their goalie was really good," she said. "We were taking strong shots, but she was blocking everything.
Junior Amy Nguyen pointed out that the Whitman team had the advantage of speed. "Most of their team was playing up, and as soon as we could get the ball past them, defense had already sprinted back and was there waiting for us," she said.

The Blazers entered playoffs ranked sixth in the county but were matched up against third-ranked Whitman, and according to Nguyen, they did not go into the game with confidence. "We did not expect to win," she said.

Despite their discouragement, Blair kept the intensity up throughout the entire game, which was constantly fast-paced and challenging. In the midst of the hussle by both teams, two Blair players were significantly injured. Junior Sophie Strike was hit in the knee with a Viking's stick early in the game, and could not reenter. Late in the second half junior Ariel Beck took a ball in the jaw and excessive bleeding from her lower lip briefly delayed the game. Beck was not wearing a mouth guard when she was injured.

Tonight's loss ended Blair's three-game winning streak, in which they defeated Sherwood, Rockville and Kennedy high schools consecutively. According to senior Leslie Auerbach, the team really came together at the end of the season, which allowed them to play as a team and win. "[At the end of the season] we were playing better as a team and we had more team unity," she said.

When the game was over tonight, the team formed a circle on the sidelines and many players, as well as Coach Amy Miller, emerged wiping tears from their cheeks and hugging teammates.