Canton High field hockey team off to impressive start

By Jay Turner

With two more convincing wins against division opponents and some impressive underlying statistics, the CHS varsity field hockey team is beginning to make a name for itself as a top contender in the Hockomock this season.

Senior captain Andrea McNeil (Mike Barucci photo)

With the exception of unbeaten King Philip, in fact, no team has been more impressive in the early going than the lady Bulldogs, who owned the Davenport Division’s best record (5-1) heading into Wednesday night’s big showdown with rival Foxboro. (Update: The lady Bulldogs won 2-1 and are now four standings points ahead of the Warriors.)

Canton’s only loss to date came against the aforementioned KP Warriors, who entered play this week with a perfect 7-0 mark and an incredible scoring differential of 37-1. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, are second in that category, having outscored opponents by a combined margin of 31-6.

“As a coaching staff, we’ve been very happy with the start of the season,” said head coach Chrissy O’Connor, who is now in year two of her second stint with the program. “We don’t really have that one superstar player, but we have kids that are working hard and want to win and who are buying into that teamwork. We have a lot of unselfish players, and we just have a combination right now that’s working.”

And despite that lack of established star power, the Bulldogs do boast a couple of top scoring threats in junior Maggie Malloy and senior captain Andrea McNeil. Malloy, a relative newcomer to the sport, has been especially prolific in the early going and already has several multi-goal games, including four last week in a 7-1 win over Milford and two more in Monday’s 5-0 victory over Sharon. McNeil, who comes from a long line of CHS field hockey players, combined for three goals in those two games and currently leads the squad in assists.

Also chipping in with goals in the last two games were Katie Trerice, Maggie Connolly, and freshman Meghan LaBelle.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Bulldogs have been downright stingy behind new goalie Riley Brown and a strong corps of defenders led by Trerice, who regularly handles the opponents’ top forward.

“Katie doesn’t have the same stats as other players, but she’s been very steady for us and probably has been our most consistent player,” noted O’Connor. “She’s done a great job of containing and breaking up plays prior to entering the circle.”

In the midfield, the Bulldogs have tried a few different combinations but have found success as of late with Kaitlyn Goyetch and freshman Maria Femia leading the way. Senior captains Emily Campbell and Maggie Wade have also been key contributors while splitting time between the midfield and backfield.

O’Connor acknowledged that the coaching staff has been tough on the players, but she said it’s because they believe in their talent and see the potential in this year’s group. She said the team will know a lot more about where they stand in the Hockomock after Wednesday night’s game against Foxboro, but win or lose, she fully expects the team to remain in the mix and continue to improve.

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