Anna Hartig
Staff Writer
The College of Wooster’s field hockey team won their first game of the season 8-0 against Wells College. The Fighting Scots competed at John P. Papp stadium where they scored eight goals from the 41 total shots on the Wells goalie. This is the first season opening win for the team since 2009, and one of the biggest margins of victory after many years.
The team utilized their time this preseason by focusing on conditioning, working as a unit and improving every practice. Sydney Schuster ’21 scored her first collegiate goal just five minutes into the game.
“For me, being a first-year, [the preseason] was the time for us to get acclimated to such a close-knit group of talented girls in order for us to perform well on the turf. Team bonding was key,” said Schuster. The team plans to keep an encouraging atmosphere on and off the field.
Their team goals involve a positive hardworking attitude along with the intention of making it far in their conference. Captain Erika Womack ’19 reinforces these objectives along with contributing two goals to the attack against Wells College this past Saturday.
Caitlyn O’Connor ’21 also scored two goals along with a hat-trick from Schuster. Grace O’Leary ’20 added to the mix, scoring just eight minutes into the game. While the offense continued to tally up the score, the defense held a strong backline, resulting in a scoreless game for their opponents. Womack emphasized the team effort that brought on such successful results in their first game.
“A highlight for me was when we had such fluid passes at the start of the second half, which converted into a shot on goal. That was the Wooster field hockey that they have taught me since preseason,” said Schuster. Along with Womack, Schuster agreed that many of the attacking opportunities to score started from amazing tackles on defense from teammates such as Harriet Sudduth ’20 and Emma Hambright ’20.
After having a successful first game, the players are looking to the rest of the season in hopes of improving on their strong start.
“In the past, we played like a grass team. Coach Ford has really made the effort to bring our play up the turf, making us play smarter hockey,” said Womack. Moving forward from the victory on turf last Saturday, the Fighting Scots will work to maintain their smart hockey as an important team standard. This includes a team atmosphere that is conducive to fast improvement and communication.
Wooster’s field hockey team will host Ohio Wesleyan University on Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 4:30 p.m. This Wednesday is the first conference game for the field hockey team and the players hope to fill the stands. Make sure to head over to John P. Papp Stadium to catch the Fighting Scots show off both their teamwork and skill.