USM Varsity Field Hockey Team Defeats Arch-Rival, Arrowhead Friday

In an early 2011 season rematch of the 2010 state championship finalists, the Varsity field hockey team defeated Arrowhead 6-0 Friday afternoon at USM.

"The girls played brilliantly all day," Tom Carter, USM's head coach said. "Everyone did well. We executed our game plan and each girl played her best."

The Wildcats clearly came prepared to play their arch rivals. Working as a team, the USM forwards and midfielders, seniors Billie Fritz, Cassie Bence, Lindsay Neitzel, Jenna Seter, Sally James, Libby Aik, Maggie Schroeder, Georgia Hoagland, and Erika Hurth, junior Meredith Jeffers, and sophomores Kendall Youngblood and Catherine Jacobus, attacked aggressively. The Arrowhead circle frequently resembled a traffic jam preventing the Warhawks from evacuating the area. When they did, the USM defenders, seniors Emily Hendrickson, Ali Robinson, and Catie Downey, junior Michelle Bal, and sophomore Abby Wigdale patiently stayed back and encircled the Arrowhead forwards as they sought inroads to the USM goal.  Because of the Wildcats' positioning, Arrowhead was finally forced to resort to long desperate icing attempts to get the ball downfield. The USM defenders were already back there and already ready. They immediately turned the ball back upfield to the Wildcat midfielders. Consequently Arrowhead did not get a shot on USM's senior goalkeeper, Margeaux Hagemann during the game.

USM, meanwhile took 23 shots on Arrowhead's goalie Nicole Catalano, and six of those shots went past the overwhelmed freshman.

The first of the Wildcats' goals went in early. Schroeder self-started the play on a free hit near midfield. She ran the ball down the right side, dodging a couple of tackles as she went. As she approached the Arrowhead circle, Schroeder crossed a hard pass to Fritz who was heading toward the far post. Fritz one-timed a shot that jetted high into the net at 26:13.

The second USM goal came at 9:33 of the first half. Seter self-started just outside the circle, pulled the ball around a defender's jab in the circle, and guided a close-in shot around Catalano.

The Wildcats tallied their third goal just over two minutes later. Youngblood got the ball outside the Arrowhead circle and ran it in on the right side. She centered it to James.  As Warhawks swarmed toward her like bees protecting their hive, James tapped the ball over to Fritz, who tapped it inside the post at 7:29.

The Wildcats scored their next goal early in the second half. They got the ball into Arrowhead's circle.  During a wild scramble in front of the net, Bence was able to reach out and knock the ball in for a goal at 25:39.

USM's next goal came on a quick strike. Jacobus gained control of the ball and sprinted with it down the right side. She crossed it to Fritz who had raced in and was all-alone in the center. Fritz immediately gunned a shot off the pass to give USM a commanding lead at 15:06. 

The Wildcats made it 6-0 late in the game. Neitzel stopped an Arrowhead clearing attempt in the circle. Like the fangs of a snake in its prey, Neitzel's quick shot was onto Catalano's leg. The ball rebounded to Aik who slammed it into the net with 6:05 remaining.

USM is now 2-0. The Wildcats next play at Brookfield Academy on Monday at 4:15 p.m.