Field hockey stays red-hot with wins vs. Norwood, OA

Junior Andrea McNeil scored the game-winning goal against Oliver Ames last week. (Mike Barucci photo)

Sophomore Maggie Malloy continued her recent scoring surge and the defense added two more shutouts to its resume as the CHS varsity field hockey team ran its winning streak to six in a row with victories last week over Norwood and Oliver Ames.

With the two latest wins, the Bulldogs improved to 9-3 overall and kept pace in the Davenport Division behind first-place Foxboro. Canton began the week just one game back and will host the Warriors on Monday in a game that could potentially determine this year’s division champion.

As for last week’s action, the Bulldogs dominated possession in both contests, defeating Norwood 3-0 on Tuesday and then knocking off the Tigers 1-0 two days later in a game that was not as close as the score suggests.

In the OA win, junior Andrea McNeil played the hero as she buried the game-winning goal in the final two minutes of the second half, assisted by Maggie Wade.

Leading up to that point, Canton also had several other quality scoring chances as well as a few near misses, and for the most part they seemed to be in complete control.

“I would say that was one of our best games that we’ve played so far,” remarked head coach Chrissy O’Connor afterwards. “OA’s goalie played excellent I thought, and there were times where we just weren’t finishing the play. But we were doing everything else and we definitely dominated them in the midfield.”

O’Connor highlighted several standout performers in the win, including McNeil on the forward line, senior Selena Cho in the midfield, and senior Molly McLaughlin in the back. But it was the way they communicated and played together as a team that had the coach most encouraged heading into the final few weeks of the season.

“I feel like our team has really started to play well together,” she said. “They’re all stepping up and doing their part.”

O’Connor said their commitment to the team concept was also evident in last week’s win over Norwood. “They did a great job of double-teaming plays, covering for each other, covering the free space,” she said. “They really, overall, have come a long way from the beginning of the season, and it’s all of them that have come a long way.”

No player, however, has exemplified this kind of steady improvement more than Malloy, a talented newcomer who has emerged as the Bulldogs’ top scoring option this season. After registering a hat trick in each of the previous two weeks, Malloy added to her team-leading total with two more goals last week against Norwood.

“She gets better every game and really has a knack for scoring,” O’Connor said of Malloy, who is also a standout ice hockey player for the CHS varsity team. “She knows where to be and she’s just kind of a natural in front of the net.”

O’Connor also made a point to recognize her two goalies, senior starter Taylor Carrington and junior backup Riley Brown. The dynamic duo has allowed just eight goals all season and have racked up six shutouts, putting them among the league leaders in both categories.

Having already locked up a spot in the postseason tournament, the Bulldogs will now look to finish strong over the final two weeks while hopefully making a run at the Davenport Division title. This week, the girls were due to visit North Attleboro on Monday and host Milford on Wednesday, followed by an away game tomorrow at Sharon. The team then closes out the regular season with three more games next week against Foxboro, Stoughton, and nonleague Dover-Sherborn.

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Posted by Jay Turner on Oct 21 2016. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.