By David Fierro
Nothing was settled between storied field hockey rivals Sacred Heart Greenwich and Greenwich Academy after 60 minutes of extremely intense action on Monday, in a game featuring standout play by both teams and several momentum swings.
Indeed, this matchup was another dramatic chapter in the rivalry that exists between the Tigers and Gators, who are accustomed to playing each other in championship games, postseason tournaments and final-minute regular-season thrillers.
The 2022 season saw Greenwich Academy and Sacred Heart meet four times, with each team winning twice and every game going down-to-the-wire and Monday’s matchup was certainly no different.
The first 2023 showdown was, indeed, a classic, before a large crowd at Greenwich Academy. Emma Marvin’s goal with 4:21 remaining in overtime gave visiting Sacred Heart Greenwich a dramatic 3-2 win over Greenwich Academy in a back-and-forth FAA game.
On the game-winning goal, Sacred Heart senior tri-captain/forward Payton Sfreddo received the insert pass off a penalty corner on the left side, took a shot on goal that went up in the air and senior tri-captain Emma Marvin got her stick on the ball as it came down and directed into the middle of the goal.
The celebration followed, as the Tigers’ players and fans stormed the field immediately after the goal was scored.
“There was a corner and the ball was pushed to Payton and she hit it,” said Marvin, as she described her game-winning goal in more detail. “And it kind of flew over a few players sticks and I was right in front of the stroke mark. I kind of used my stick like a baseball bat and hit it right in the left net.”
The overtime victory increased Sacred Heart’s winning streak to seven games and improved its record to 5-0 in the FAA and 9-1 overall. Should SHG receive finish in first place in the league, it will receive the No. 1 seed in the FAA Tournament and host the championship game, should it advance.
“We worked really hard the whole game,” Sacred Heart Greenwich coach Alex Gheorghe said. “Obviously, we’re very happy, but it wasn’t easy. Greenwich Academy played really well. They have a very good group of girls – very talented. The ball bounced our way, so we’re really happy with that.”
GA has a 4-1 mark in the FAA and is 6-4 overall. One season ago, Sacred Heart was victorious against Greenwich Academy twice during the regular season, then the Gators won both postseason matchups – the FAA Tournament final and the NEPSAC Class A Tournament quarterfinal-round game.
“We played a good game, we worked really hard, I’m proud of my team,” Greenwich Academy senior forward/co-captain Caroline Busler said. We had good possession of the ball and Sacred Heart played a great game. We’re looking forward to playing them again.”
The host Gators came close to taking the lead late in the fourth quarter, after registering quality shots on goal off a pair of penalty corners. They also had a penalty corner in overtime. SHG kept the score tied, with goalie Teresa Harkins making key saves.
“Our defense was huge they were marking every player, which is so helpful for me, because then I could just focus on the ball,” Harkins said. “I was a little nervous going into overtime. It was so much fun, I was having a great time.”
Said Gheorghe: “In big games like this, you need good player from your goalie and Teresa made some great saves.”
Brower was pleased with GA’s efforts on their penalty corners. The Gators took seven penalty corners for the game, while the Tigers were awarded six corners.
“Their defense played really tough,” Brower said. “They were diving and playing really relentless in the circle. We thought we were close a couple of times and then they just stayed in there.”
Sacred Heart lit the scoreboard first taking a 1-0 lead with 9:36 left in the first quarter. Freshman Whitney Rousseau, who has scored a number of clutch goals in her first varsity season, tallied off a penalty corner for the game’s first goal.
“We came out super strong and it helped us to come out that strong,” said Sfreddo, who has competed in numerous Sacred Heart-GA varsity field hockey matchups. “It showed them that we were here to play. So, that was super exciting.”
Greenwich Academy tied the score at 1-1 with 13:22 to go in the second quarter. Sophomore forward Chloe Cleaves scored off a rebound on a penalty corner for the home team. The penalty corner came shortly after Busler and senior midfielder Devon Grills connected passes well up the field.
“Once they went up, we scored and tied it each time – we played tough,” GA junior forward/co-captain Lavinia Cartellieri said.
The Gators threatened to take the edge at the 3:55 mark of the second quarter, but a nice save by Harkins kept the score knotted at 1-1. With 11:21 left in the third quarter, Sfreddo gave the Tigers a 2-1 advantage.
Sfreddo’s tally was the result of a well-executed penalty corner.
“It was off a corner, a rebound off a corner,” Sfreddo said of her goal. “It popped out to my stick and I hit it as hard as I could into the bottom corner. Then, I hoped for the best.”
“The execution on the corners was very good,” Gheorghe noted. “Everyone played very well.”
A goal from Cartellieri off an assist from Cleaves on a penalty corner tied the score at 2-2 for GA with 1:59 to play in the third quarter. Brower liked what she saw on both ends of the field from her squad as the game progressed.
“Our first half wasn’t our best, then we figured stuff out and made adjustments,” Brower noted. “Kudos to Sacred Heart, they played a hard- fought game – congratulations to them. We did better in the second half of passing before we got under pressure but that’s something we need to continue to work on. I think we had some moments where we had some really nice passing patterns.”
Harkins made 10 saves in goal for the Tigers, while junior Persia Shipman also rose to the occasion in goal for the Gators. Shipman recorded five saves.
“We faced them many times before and it’s always a great game,” Busler said. “Congratulations to them and we’re excited to play them again,” Busler added, referencing the fact that the two rivals could meet again should they both once again, reach the FAA Tournament final.”
The 10-minute overtime quarter featured 7-on-7 action.
“We practice a lot of overtime settings – at least once a week since summertime,” said SHG senior tri-captain Charly Nemec, one of the numerous standout players of the game for the Tigers. “We knew everyone had to support each other, we wanted to work as a unit, not individual players. It clearly showed, from Teresa in goal, to Payton at forward.”
“This team has got a lot of grit, I think we were ready to keep playing all the way,” Nemec continued. “Starting off with that first goal of the game sparked us.”
Said Cartellieri: “Playing in overtime is a lot of pressure, but we usually do well. I think it was a very even game, it could have gone either way. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out well for us, but we’ll see them again soon. We’ll train hard.”
Greenwich Academy is in action again on Friday against School of the Holy Child at home at 4 p.m.
Sacred Heart hosts FAA foe Rye Country Day School today at 4:15 p.m.
“GA is always a pretty emotional and intense game,” Marvin noted. “Playing against them is a fun game. It’s fun going back and forth with possession. It’s a super even and equal game and it’s super fun. We said that this field is pretty lucky because they did beat us on our home turf last year. This is kind of our lucky field even though it’s here.”
“They are a really strong team and it was so fun to play against them,” Sfreddo said. “The atmosphere was incredible and I think coming out with this win and the heart this team played with was incredible. I’m so proud and happy with everyone.”
