Deerfield had been waiting for this rematch for six weeks after settling for a frustrating draw down in Windsor in their first match against Loomis back in September. We knew we’d have to find answers for their impenetrable defense. What we didn’t know was how few players we’d have to work with. Beginning the day with two out with injury, the bench quickly turned into a hospital ward, as DA saw five additional teammates depart the game with injuries, leaving us with only two subs. But Deerfield’s top-to-bottom depth has been one of its greatest assets this year, and thirteen players turned out to be plenty to secure a satisfying victory in the rematch. Loomis came out strong and forced us to defend in our own half. But, as has been so often the case this season, the Deerfield offense soon entered a flow state and managed to move the ball fluidly and maintain possession, limiting the Pelicans’ chances. Every DA player focused on drawing defenders and then switching the ball to open space. This bore fruit in the nineteenth minute when captain Rich Zhou ’26 launched a ball from the left side up to right wing Ari Baharani ’29, who put Deerfield on the board with his signature powerful shot. The team then created several more chances that didn’t quite come together, and then in the final seconds of the half, a rare defensive breakdown let Loomis score the equalizer. But Deerfield was confident in the huddle and knew we just needed to keep doing what we were doing. At 57′ midfielder PJ Pirsch drove up the field and sent the ball up to striker Cole Higgins ’26, who scored his 25th goal of the season. If the coaches had remembered to tally assists this season, Pirsch’s number would be jaw-dropping, a testament to how his unselfish play is turning into goals and wins and setting the tone for our dangerous offense. Did we also mention how beautiful his corner kicks are? At 63′ one of them found the foot of fullback Charlie Juhas ’29, who gave DA an insurance goal. After that, Deerfield and its short bench had to empty the tank to lock down the win. The versatile Matthew Susanto ’29 set a personal playing time record, and Jack LaRovere Abrams at midfielder showed excellent instincts for getting his body in front of the ball and anticipating Loomis’s next move. A huge shout-out goes to Door of the Week defensive midfielder Jasper Gruhl ’28, who also played more minutes than ever before and never makes a bad decision. But more than any individual performance, this team playing together is tremendous fun to watch. The last chance to do that comes on Deerfield’s day of days: Saturday’s 11:30 am contest against Choate.