When the Manchester Essex and Ipswich field hockey teams play one another, it’s destined to go down to the wire.
During the regular season meeting between the two teams in Ipswich during the first month of the season, the game was tight all the way through before Manchester Essex prevailed with a 1-0 win. When the Hornets and Tigers played again in Manchester a month later, it was another close game with the home team prevailing over Ipswich again. On November 6, the two teams met yet again with more on the line this time: The winner would move on to the Elite Eight of the MIAA Div. 4 Tournament, and the loser’s season would be over.
It took the entirety of regulation, two overtimes and a shootout (five players on each gets a one-on-one opportunity to attempt to score against the opposition’s goalie) to decide the eventual victor, and this time around Ipswich prevailed.
“The regulation time of this game was tight, tilted just slightly in our direction,” explains Manchester Essex coach Courtney Brown. “We played extremely hard and had 20 shots on net compared to their nine. Ultimately, we had to go into double overtime which is sudden death. Since no one scored then, we concluded in a shootout. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to score during the shootout while Ipswich did twice.”
Knowing that the margins were going to be tight in this contest going in, Manchester Essex did everything they could to avoid going to the extra stanzas.
“As it got clearer that we might go into overtime, we focused on being ‘the first:’ First to the ball, first to pass, first to shoot and score,” says Brown. “We controlled a lot of the play in both seven-versus-seven overtime periods. Ultimately, we had to go into a shootout since we couldn’t get past their goalie.”
Abby Kent, Summer Demeo and goalkeeper Brigid Carovillano were the upperclassmen helping to keep the Hornets moving at that next-level clip, while some of the younger players on the team played key roles during important moments.
“Abby, Summer, Aisling and Brigid played every minute of the game last night and worked their tails off to try to keep possession, get shots and stay strong defensively,” explains Brown. “Sophomores Kieran Day, Sarah Broadbent and Maya Frangioso also were locked in and stepped up big time as part of our five shootout players.”
The loss knocked the Hornets out of the tournament and ended the team’s fall season. Even with the loss, there was plenty for this squad to be proud of achieving.
“We’re proud of this season,” says Brown. “We finished with a record of 15-3-2 and won the CAL Baker champions title. Although we weren’t able to make it as far as we’d hoped in the tournament, we are looking at the bright side of things; we got to end our season on our home field, we gave the game against Ipswich absolutely everything we had, and we made incredible progress this season to get us here. I think our shutout record is also impressive -- 14 -- and shows how strong our team defense has been overall.”
Manchester Essex will be without the contributions of outgoing seniors Brigid Carovillano, Summer Demeo, Aisling Twombly, Hannah Davis, Isabelle Donnellan Valade and Fiona Flynn after they graduate in the spring. The six seniors will certainly be missed.
“As a whole, they have been the most hardworking, respectful, reliable seniors and leaders,” explains Brown. “They’ve united our team so much that I’m confident they will all stay connected post-field hockey season. These friendships are truly lifelong and that’s what it’s all about.”
Those seniors now pass the torch to players like Abby Kent, Laila Mears, Penelope Riggs, and Emma Hickey, as well as some of the aforementioned members of the sophomore class.
“Of course, we have Abby Kent and I look forward to a record-breaking senior season for her,” says Brown. “Her fellow juniors Laila, Penelope, and Emma are well-suited for stepping up and continuing this tradition of competitive, successful seasons. I also look forward to seeing how our sophomore class -- nine of them returning -- develops in the off-season. They are going to make a huge impact—they are spirited, hungry, and tremendous athletes.”
