WA Girls’ Field Hockey had their first victory of the season, defeating Lowell High School 3-1 on Friday, September 13, improving their season score to 1-4.
Westford Academy stayed in control for the majority of the game with junior goalie Khloe Felicani being one of the key players. Throughout the game, Felicani stood her ground, defending WA’s goal throughout the game and only allowing one goal to be scored by Lowell. Offensively, junior Lia Arevalo and senior captain Rachel Haley were relentless, constantly making strong attempts at their opponents’ goal.
Six minutes into the first quarter, sophomore Avery Votano scored the first goal of the game for WA. Senior Sofia Cannistraro hustled down the field with Votano, keeping control of the ball and setting her up for a good look at the goal, earning a point and an early 1-0 lead.
Goals from both teams made for an eventful and evenly matched second quarter. A few possessions in, sophomore Alita Gulizia made an aggressive attack on goal resulting in an additional point in favor of the Ghosts.
However, after a Lowell timeout, they were able to push their offense and use their momentum to earn a goal themselves, tightening the score to 2-1 at the end of the first half.
Lowell had possession of the ball for a good portion of the third quarter, but Felicani was unstoppable in goal, saving every ball that came her way. As the third quarter came to an end, the score differential remained a one, with WA in the lead.
“I had to mentally and physically persevere in this game and find my inner strength to perform at my highest level which I was eventually able to do to keep my team in the game,” Felicani said.
In the fourth and final quarter, WA’s energy was high trying to finish out the game on top of Lowell.
“I think what set this game apart from others was our energy,” Haley said. “Even though it was hot outside, we maintained a positive attitude and had good communication on and off of the field.”
Sophomores Maddie McWade and Gulizia had a dominating offensive play wrapping up the fourth quarter, ending with an additional goal scored by Gulizia and assisted by McWade.
This goal secured the win for the Ghosts who stayed strong defensively for the final minutes of the game resulting in a 3-1 win for WA.
The Ghosts celebrated their first victory of the season but are aiming to use this win as a building block and foundation to achieve more wins in the future.
“It was a good feeling to finally win a game and equally rewarding to have our hard work pay off,” senior captain Lauren Treible said.
WA Girls’ Field Hockey will direct their focus on solid communication and positioning on the field at their next home game on Tuesday, September 17 against Tewksbury Memorial High School.
