By Jordan Fairchild
Elm Staff Writer
On Wednesday, Sept. 15, the Washington College field hockey team played in a non-Conference match against the Notre Dame College of Maryland Gators on Kibler Field at Roy Kirby, Jr. Stadium.
The Shorewomen earned a victory over the Gators, 9–1. With this win, the Shorewomen have won 12 of the 14 matchups against the Gators in the history of their competition.
The Shorewomen scored four unanswered goals in the first quarter of the game, securing a 4–0 lead over the Gators.
Sophomore Kate Gromacki started the scoring run with a goal early into the quarter. Senior Christen Quillen put another goal on the board for the Shorewomen later into the quarter. Freshman Emily Ulizio and sophomore Alexis Tackney each tallied goals for the team to close out the quarter.
In the second quarter, senior Madison Parker and freshman Kat Esposito scored two more goals for the Shorewomen.
With these goals, the Shorewomen entered halftime with a 6–0 lead over the Gators.
The Gators scored one goal in the third quarter, bringing the score to 6–1.
In the fourth quarter, the Shorewomen secured their victory with three more goals. Junior Jillian Brejnik scored once and junior Julianna Sterling closed out the game with the final two goals to put the score at 9–1.
“Our team chemistry is really great, and it’s amazing knowing everyone on your team has your back no matter what,” Sterling said. “It’s really cool to see that trust translate onto the field, and it really pushes us to put in work for each other every opportunity we get.”
The nine goals scored by the Shorewomen against the Gators during this game are the most goals the program has scored since 2015, which was eight against Bryn Mawr College.
“The team goal for the rest of the season is to win and grow as a team on and off the field,” Tackey said. “We have a big focus on continuing to play green, which means playing in a way to support each other and giving us the ‘go’ to play as hard as we can with good character.”
On Saturday, the Shorewomen travelled to St. Mary’s College of Maryland to compete against the Seahawks.
The Seahawks walked away with a 2–1 victory over the Shorewomen.
Towards the end of the first quarter, the Seahawks scored their first goal, putting the score at 0–1 going into the second quarter.
Neither team scored during the second quarter or third quarter of the game.
In the fourth quarter, the Seahawks continued their lead with another goal, but the Shorewomen answered back with a goal by Esposito, assisted by Sterling.
The final score ended at 1-2, Seahawks.
Sophomore goalie Ava Rivera had four total saves during the game and junior Tatum Schatt came away with the team’s first defensive save of the season.
“Our team would really like to have a winning season and make the conference tournament, and I know we have the tools we need to achieve this goal,” Schatt said. “I am excited to see where all our team’s hard work takes us.” The Shorewomen now have an overall record of 4–2 and will travel to Shenandoah University on Saturday, Sept. 25 next to face the Hornets.
Photo by Izze Rios