Field Hockey: Reserve defeats Amherst

Event Details

Deerfield Reserve Field Hockey Starts Season with a Win

Deerfield Reserve field hockey started their season off with a strong first effort with a 2-1 win against Amherst at home on Wednesday. Spectators that day probably wouldn’t have guessed that 9 out of 12 of the players on the team had only started learning field hockey eight days ago. Deerfield took to the field with such intensity and grit that, by the second half, they started communicating and connecting on passes like a team that had been playing together for much longer.

Play in the first half was pretty evenly matched with the action in both ends of the field. Amherst was first to get some shots off, but seasoned goalkeeper Janice Chen ’20 stopped the four shots Amherst took in the first half. Deerfield defense was lead by the steady play of lone experienced defender Saadhya Bahudodda ’20. Time and time again, Saadhya kept defusing dangerous situations with poise and patience. Newcomers Nadia Shahin ’21, Izzy Hamlen ’21 and Eliza Winson ’21 all earned their defensive stripes by being thrust into some intense action early on. After a flurry of action in our attacking circle, Isabella Rolfe ’21 scored our first goal of the season off a pass from Mira Binzen ’21 to finish the half with a 1-0 lead.

The second half saw Deerfield turn up their intensity by outshooting Amherst 7-1. The midfield saw some intense action with great connecting passes from Mary Blake Zeron ’21, Arden Anderson ’21 and Kareena Bhakta ’20. Jada Howard ’19 capitalized on a pass from newcomer Anne Brown ’21 to put us up 2-0. Amherst fought back and made it 2-1. Towards the final ten minutes of the game, Deerfield created some great scoring opportunities with Ally Kell ’20 and Charlotte Molinari ’21 getting a few breakaways. Center back Ellie Shilling ’21 played steady defense but also helped on offense by sending some key passed back into our scoring circle. Deerfield kept up the pressure on Amherst’s defense, but their goalkeeper kept coming up with key saves at every turn. In the end, The Big Green held onto the win and notched a very promising start to the season. Next up for the Big Green is Hotchkiss this Saturday.

Penalty Corners: DA 8 Amherst 4
Shots of Goal: DA 9 Amherst 5
Goalie Saves: DA 4 Amherst 7