Field Hockey Grinds Out Two Wins

Exeter’s field hockey team, Moxie, had another successful week, adding two more wins to its season record against Pingree School and Northfield Mount Hermon School (NMH). On Wednesday, Oct. 11, Moxie defeated Pingree in a close game with a score of 3-2 and a sound win of 5-0 against NMH the following Saturday.

"Even though we were down two goals, we stayed positive and managed to score three more throughout the game and come out with a win.”

Wednesday’s game against Pingree proved to be a tough game from the start. With many recruited freshmen on the Pingree team, Moxie knew it would play a competitive game against these talented athletes. While Moxie was down by a few points in the beginning of the game, players soon gained their momentum on the field, after talking with each other about what each of them needed to do to make a comeback.

Upper and co-captain Hannah Littlewood noted that the team’s mentality really helped them with the comeback in the Pingree game. “Our mental toughness helped us win. Even though we were down two goals, we stayed positive and managed to score three more throughout the game and come out with a win,” she said.

Upper Jane Collins added that the team had worked well together during the game and had a remarkable performance on the field. “Our forwards like Ally and Lydia had really nice crosses in the circle that were tipped in in the Pingree game,” she said.

For Saturday’s game, Moxie once again attributed its success to its exceptional teamwork and consistency throughout the game.Though NMH had defeated Moxie in the previous year with a score of 0-2, Big Red has improved overall since then, leading to its great win against NMH. Littlewood described that passing was key during the NMH game. “By connecting passes and communicating, we were able to take the ball up the field quickly and set people up to score,” she said. Littlewood also praised upper Lydia Anderson for her many goals and assists.

Collins noted that, in the game against NMH, everyone played consistently throughout. “We continued through intensity and even though we were up by a lot of points, we didn’t let up and came out strong during the whole game,” she said.

In general, upper and co-captain Catherine Griffin explained that playing home games was also an advantage for the two successful wins. “Our games against Pingree and NMH were both really good. We had good teamwork in both games, and I also think that playing on our home turf gave us an advantage,” she said.

With the day off on Monday for Family Weekend, Littlewood believed that the rest and recuperation will be great for the team. “After that we will continue to work hard in practice and mentally prepare for the next two games,” she said. Collins added that for the upcoming games, the team is working on movement inside the circle and generating offense.

This week, Moxie will be playing a home game against Tilton School on Wednesday and an away game at Brooks on Oct. 21. Big Red looks forward to maintaining its winning streak in the upcoming games, having claimed victory over two tough teams during this last week.