Springbrook squashes varsity field hockey

BLUE DEVILS STADIUM, Oct. 27 —

The varsity field hockey team (4-9) fell to the Springbrook Blue Devils (10-2) on Thursday evening, ending its season in a 6-1 loss. Although the Lady Blazers showcased solid stick skills, it would not be enough to hold off a Blue Devil team that defeated Blair earlier this month.

The Blazers went into the game expecting a tough match against one of the best teams in the county. "We expected it to be an extremely difficult game because we lost 9-0 to them in the regular season," head coach Christine Denny said. Senior defender Marlee McPherson echoed her coach's statement. "They were a really good team," she said. "Although we played our hardest and had one of our best games, we could not hold them off for the entire game."

Blair's defense started strong, forcing numerous Blue Devil turnovers which led to a close score in the first half. The teams traded possession early in the game, as neither was able to break the tie. However, Springbrook snagged a loose ball and scored on Blair late in the half. The Blazers held the game at 1-0 until 53 seconds remained in the period, when Springbrook forward Piper Spiller broke free and scored, bringing the score up to 2-0 just before halftime.

After a close first half, the team remained optimistic about the game. "We were all pumped up and ready to go. Honestly, I thought we [could] win — especially after the first few minutes," junior midfielder Jenny Beech said.

The Blue Devils controlled play for most of the second half, keeping the ball in Blair's defensive zone and capitalizing on penalty strokes awarded to the team. During the first fifteen minutes, the ball rarely crossed over to Springbrook's defensive zone. Although the teams began trading the ball back and forth again, the Blue Devils soon overpowered the Blazers and scored three quick goals in a span of five minutes.

Despite the lopsided score, Blair fought on. "The team did really well with making fast passes and keeping up the intensity," junior forward Zoe McCarthy said.

Blair didn't let in a goal for the remainder of the game and wasn't held scoreless on the offensive end. With only ten seconds left on the clock, Beech was able to score her first goal since joining the varsity squad.

Despite getting knocked out of the playoffs and having its season cut short, the team was pleased with how its season played out — especially Thursday night's game. "We never gave up, and I'm so proud of us for that," Beech said. McCarthy added that the team's record doesn't accurately reflect the team's progress since the beginning of the season. "I'm really proud of everyone and how they played," she said.

With the seniors graduating at the end of the year, the team is looking to expand and improve for next season. "We have a young team, so we'll need to work in the offseason on basics in order to focus on strategy next year," Denny said. McCarthy echoed her coach's statement. "I am hopeful for next year because we had a very strong JV program, [which has] a lot of good players that will strengthen varsity next year," she said.