FHockey Starts Season With Jamboree

This past weekend, Exonians headed over to the fields to see the first fall games of the year in action. Varsity Field hockey played in their first scrimmages, competing in a jamboree with Pingree, Nobles and Brooks. With a week of preseason practices to prepare for the games, the girls came out prepared to play as a team—no matter the outcome—and worked together to get shots off and complete passes.

The focus for these games was to build team chemistry between the players and to “learn from each other’s strengths and weaknesses as players,” lower Molly Longfield explained. Because the team this year is very young and has a lot of new players, they worked on moving as a group and communicating on the pitch. “[This is] not a bad thing at all… it will just take a bit of time and practice for us to come together and get to know each other’s playing styles,” senior co-captain Leah Cohen added.

As the game progressed, the team improved their ball handling skills and worked on sending the ball up the left sideline as much as before. They began sending long balls down the middle and finding the forwards on their runs. Because of their strenuous workouts and stamina training throughout preseason and these past few days of practice, the girls were in peak condition to outrun their opponents.

Although the outcome of the games did not turn out as everyone hoped, “it was important to figure out where [the team] stands compared to other high level teams,” Longfield expressed. The scrimmages made clear much potential for following games in the season, highlighting the grit of the team. The new preps and lowers bring a lot of young talent and energy to the varsity squad. Senior Captain Sophia Rosati added that “it was evident everyone was working very hard” and giving 100 percent effort throughout the whole game.

For the next practices, the girls will continue to focus on working together and learning each other’s playing styles. “We will spend our future practices honing in on different fundamental skills,” Longfield concluded. 

From a tactical standpoint, the team is still working on their formations—their circle defense, for example. But these are things that will improve with time. In the end, “[the girls] have been working hard in practices on spreading the field, communication and trust—all things that will definitely come as we continue to play together,” Cohen said.