Athletics
Game Summaries
JV Field Hockey Season 2008
EWS 1–Coxsackie-Athens 1
The Jesters had an exciting opening game against Coxsackie-Athens. Starting on the forward line were Natascia, Ashley, Ianna, and Hallie. They were able to move the ball up the field for us, and create opportunities in the circle. The midfielders, Adair, Annie, and Jaye used their speed and patience to help out the defense and offense. Maxine, Sirianna, and Angela kept us strong in the backfield, while Sarah anchored our defense in goal. Off the bench, Marley, Caroline, Maya, and Julia provided fresh legs and new speed, particularly on the forward line and in midfield. It was fun to watch our girls, (many of whom have never played before!) get into their first game at the high school level. They were definitely fueled by the exciting varsity game prior. After being down a goal, Ianna finished a great shot in the circle and tied the game at one. The score would remain the same, but the jesters were hungry to score again, and we had some great opportunities by Adair and Natascia, particularly on our corners. All in all, it was a great beginning, and we look forward to our next game at Taconic Hills.
EWS 1–Taconic Hills 3
Our jesters came into the Taconic Hills game excited after a great first game versus Coxsackie-Athens. Taconic Hills is an experienced team, but the girls out hustled them in the first half and our game began to pick up. Hallie had some good runs with the ball up the sideline, and defensively, Jaye and Caroline worked together to pressure Taconic Hills into turning over the ball. Taconic Hills got on the scoreboard early and found the net again before the first half was over. Ianna was able to convert for us once again, owing to her persistence in the circle, and we on the scoreboard at 2-1. In the last 10 minutes, Taconic Hills had us at 3-1, and the girls made some moves to even the score. Marley had some great opportunities inside the circle, and Maxine came up with some big defensive saves for us. Our play improved within the second half, and we were able to work on team play, with Sirianna and Annie making some good double teams on the sideline. We took this game as a learning lesson and look to improve on our play as a team when we face Mount Anthony’s next week.
EWS 0–Mount Anthony 1
The Jesters fought hard against a scrappy Mount Anthony offense. The girls were able to fend off 6 Mount Anthony penalty corners, with Sarah E making some key saves for us in goal. In the first half, we attempted to work the ball out of our defensive zone, both Maxine and Sirianna had some good passes up the sideline. Angela and Caroline played well on our right sideline and used their positioning to force turnovers in the midfield. We stepped up our game in the second half with Ianna and Hallie making some close shots for us in the circle. We looked to Maya on the right side to help us keep the ball in play. We go into the next game versus Ichabod Crane with the goal of spreading out when we are on offense, and getting some corners in the circle.
EWS 1–Ichabod Crane 6
Maxine graciously stepped up and played in goal for an ailing Sarah. The girls worked together to protect Maxine as she faced a flurry of shots in 1v1 situations in the second half. The first half was a defensive effort, with Jaye and Maya making some key saves in the defensive circle. Annie and Sirianna stepped up to fill the holes in the back and midfield, due to injuries. Both were key ball distributors in the midfield. Ashley and Marley played off each other in the inside forward position, as well as the wing. Stacie was also playing a new position, and her persistence in front of the cage gave us a goal in the second half. Ichabod was stronger than our previous opponent and spread us out for most of the game. Our goal moving forward is to not bunch ourselves in the middle of the field and work together to create offensive opportunities.
EWS 0–Hooscik Falls 4
The Jesters came out today ready to hustle, work together, and spread out the field. Sarah was back in cage, and Maxine resumed her duties in the backfield. With Adair still out, Annie, Stacie, and Hallie moved into the middle of the field to help our team have more control in the midfield. Maya, after working hard in practice on her block tackles, stepped up with some key defensive saves for us to stop the ball. Jaye showed her patience on defense, forcing turnovers on breakaways. Caroline also worked hard on forcing the ball wide and saw much success. The combination of Jay, Maya, Caroline, and Angela is proving to be a strong, patient unit in our midfield and backfield. Julia moved to the forward line on the wing position, switching with Hallie. This proved to be a great switch, and both girls worked hard in their new positions. Hallie and Ianna worked hard in the inside forward line, and they combined with Marley, Julia, and Ashley for some pretty combinations into the offensive circle. Annie was consistent on her hits out on corners and we had many chances; now we just have to finish! The Jesters go into Tuesday ready to be an offensive threat in the circle, and we will look at making a new formation.
EWS 0–Germantown 6
The Jesters looked to take risks and try new things today in the game versus Germantown. We changed our formation on the field to a 3-3-3-1. Stacie, Hallie, and Julia played on the front line. Adair as back in the midfield, joining Ianna and Annie. Maxine, Maya, and Angela played in the backfield, and Sirianna played in the sweeper position in front of Sarah in goal. Our girls are getting very good at understanding the concepts of the game as well as working on their individual skills. The girls worked to communicate with each other to spread out and cut wide for our defense on their free hits. We had a few opportunities that were close call balls on the post. Our goal for the next game is to make these close calls goals! Our second half was once again our better half, and we want to as a team make our whole game strong. The ladies have a break before our next game, round 2 versus Coxsackie-Athens on Thursday.
EW 0–Coxsackie Athens 1
The Jesters played their best game of the season today. The girls worked hard on what we talked about in practice: spreading out, using small passes to each, and getting the ball up the sidelines to each other. Sirianna had a great game as our sweeper, and her communication as well as defense provided the anchor for us. Maxine, Jaye, and Annie also worked exceptionally hard with Sirianna and the four were able to switch and move the ball effectively. Stacie made some good runs up the left side of the field and used her one-on-one skills to eliminate her player and get some offensive opportunities. Hallie had some close calls in the offensive circle, as did Adair on the corners. CA capitalized on a breakaway in the second half, but the girls fought hard and kept working, I was very proud of their never-say-die attitude. We look to Monday’s game against Mount Anthony as a definite chance to get on the scoreboard and keep building off of all our hard work.
EW 1–Mount Anthony 2
The Jesters came out strong today. We moved some people around in the lineup, and the girls showed how versatile they were by adjusting to their new positions. Mount Anthony scored first, and one of goals during our timeout was to talk more on defense, and use each other up the field. Coming right back into play, Angela had an amazing defensive save that prevented the score from being 2-0. Marley and Hallie had a couple chances to covert on offensive before the first half was finished.
The second half was once again our best half, as we scored a goal thanks to a true team effort! Stacie had a great run up the left sideline, looked for Ashley, who took a shot. Caroline was ready at the top of the circle to keep the ball in play, and Ianna was able to hit it in for a goal. Going into our game vs. Taconic Hills, we want to score first, and continue to work on our patience on defense.
EW 0–Taconic Hills 3
The Jesters controlled most of the first half of the game vs. Taconic Hills. Marley, Hallie, and Ashley pressured the ball and hustled to every 50/50 one. Sirianna made some key defensive saves for us in the backfield, and her coming up and being involved in the offense pushed us all up on the field. We spent a majority of the first half in our offensive circle. We were able to get some shots off on our corner opportunities, with Adair having some great chances on net, as well as Annie. We have been working on using our strength in the backfield and moving that momentum forward into the offensive end. That, and marking inside the defensive circle, will be our goals for the next game.
EW 0–Scotia 3
The Jesters played their best game of the season versus a scrappy Scotia team. Marley got us going in the offensive zone, and made some shots on cage that we rushed to finish. Staci had some opportunities on the left side, while Sirianna, Annie, and Maxine kept us strong in the defensive zone. Maxine stepped in to fill the void in goal, and she did a good job coming out and stopping Scotia’s offensive rushes. Jaye and Maya worked together on the right side to move the ball up the field. Ianna was resilient in the midfield for us, as were Adair and Caroline. The pressure we put on Scotia from the backfield up was great and a new thing for us to try. We go into a week off, and then play our four final games!
EW 2–Salem 2
The Jesters came into Monday’s game against Salem under different circumstances than usual. The game was 6 on 6, as Salem only had 6 players. The Jesters rose to the challenge, working hard and subbing frequently. The low numbers on the field enabled us to work on one of our goals: spreading out. Salem scored first on a breakaway, and then quickly in the second half. The Jesters did not give up and went on both a defensive and offensive surge. Sarah began to come out of the goal and made some great stops late in the second half to keep us in the game. Angela used her diagonal dribble to get the ball out of the defense and into the offensive zone. We scored our first goal as Marley brought the ball into the circle and took a shot. Caroline kept the ball in play, while Stacie and Ianna passed the ball before taking a shot. Annie got a rebound and slammed the ball home for us. Ianna had an opportunity right after, as Annie gave her a spectacular pass inside the circle for a goal. Our goal for the next game is to capitalize early on our opportunities and not let the clock run out on us.
EW 1–Ichabod Crane 2
The Jesters came into Tuesday’s game against Ichabod with something to prove. We were playing different hockey since seeing Ichabod last, and we wanted to show them how much we have improved. The Jesters put the pressure on right away, with our defense starting at our forward line. Ashley and Julia kept the field spread out for us on the wing, and their patience on defense kept us down in our offensive end for most of the first half. Ichabod scored with 16 into the first half, but the Jesters kept pressure on. Maya played a great defensive game and had some pretty combinations with Caroline up the right side of the field. Hallie used her great speed to get the ball up the field on fast breakaway, and Stacie had some near misses in the first half. Maxine began to clear the ball out of the defense and move herself up the field, which gave us extra people on the offensive end. Sirianna and Adair continued to work together on our corners, and Annie converted off of a corner pass form Maxine in the second half to get us on the board. In the end, the clock ran out on us again, but we tried new things today, and definitely showed Ichabod Crane what we have been working on.
EW 0–Germantown 0
Today’s game was a tremendous effort by the Jesters. Called due to darkness, the Jesters fought throughout the whole game, which ended in a draw. The Jesters played their best game of the season, a true team effort. Sarah played excellent in goal, coming out to the top of the circle to stop offensive breakaways. Angela and Sirianna made some key defensive saves in the circle, and Annie kept us going with her strong free hits. Ianna worked hard in the middle, and brought the ball up the field with her strong pulls and 1v1 skills. On our four corners, Adair used her poise to take good shots on the keeper, and we used our speed in the circle to help her finish. We look forward to our last game tomorrow and are excited to show the parents how hard we have been working all season!
EW 0–Guilderland 0
The Jesters closed out the season on a high note. Playing in front of our parents, we worked hard together and played some of our personal best hockey of the season! On the defensive end, Annie kept us in the transition between defense and offense with her strong free hits, Maxine used her stepped to move the ball up the field, Angela’s patience on defense resulted in her making a lot of tackles by forcing wide, and Sirianna maintained our defensive anchor. Maya and Caroline were able to use their speed and patience to force the Guilderland players to turn the ball over. Sarah continued to come out on the ball and made some great saves that traveled out of the circle. Ianna, Adair, and Stacie worked hard in the midfield and offensive zone to move the ball up to Hallie, Marley, Julia, and Ashley. Hallie used her speed and reach to put the ball ahead of her and move to it. Both Hallie and Julia had great passing combinations up the field. Ashley and Marley worked together on the left side, witching with each other and scissor passing. Late in the second half, Marley had a great 1v1 opportunity but the keeper tackled the ball and she. All in all, it was a great cap to the season. The Jesters worked hard all season and their improvements over the course of the season was immense and fun to watch. Go Emma!
