Responding to every challenge thrown their way, the Greenwich field hockey team escaped with a 3-2 win over Ridgefield at Tiger Stadium on Monday to improve to 3-3 on the season.
“The girls have been working extremely hard in practice,” Greenwich head coach Ally Orrico said following the game. “I’m really proud of them because they are putting things they learn in practice into the games. They are getting better every second.”
The win ended a three-game losing streak after the Cardinals won the first two games of their season.
A 2-2 tie was broken with 9:12 left in the game, after a battle in front of Ridgefield’s net resulted in an own goal that ricochet off a Tiger defender.
Paige Mautner, the last Cardinal player to touch the ball, was credited with the game-winning goal.
After conceding the game’s first goal, Ridgefield would continue to battle back to tie the game twice before Greenwich secured the win.
The scoring started as Mautner fired a shot that hit off the post and was rebounded by Erika Hvolbeck who connected for the game’s first goal ten minutes into the first half.
“We’ve been really trusting each other a lot,” Hvolbeck said after the game. “I think that’s a big part of it. We needed to trust each other more than anything, especially the forwards. In the beginning of the season we weren’t starting off as strong as we could. The defense stepped up and what we practice in practice is coming out in the games.”
Five minutes after the opening goal of the game, Ridgefield went on the attack and forced two corner opportunities in a row before sophomore Katie Pieterse finally scored the equalizer with 15:09 left in the half.
Hvolbeck would then direct traffic in the middle of the field and find an open Kate DeWinter to open up a 2-1 lead for the Cardinals.
Greenwich would apply defensive pressure after Ridgefield’s rebuttals, but a second equalizer came with 16:48 remaining in the game. The Tigers’ would capitalize on a penalty corner and tie the game at two.
The speed of Greenwich would show in the final minutes of the game as the Cardinals forced three consecutive corner opportunities within a two-minute span, which led to a much-needed timeout for Ridgefield.
Causing havoc in front of Ridgefield’s goal with nine minutes left, Mautner would be the last Greenwich player to make contact with the ball before it eventually found the back of the net for the game clincher.
Sitting at 3-3, the Cardinals will play Brien McMahon next week before returning home to take on Fairfield Warde.
Orrico said her team is playing with tons of heart and hopes to remain focused throughout the season.
“We have very talented players and they are starting to understand the nuances of playing together,” Orrico said. “I want to see them continue to be focused and I want to continue to see the confidence they are bringing into the game.
