The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School varsity field hockey team, coming off a winless season last year, is showing promise. Under the guidance of first year head coach, Kaitlyn Benoit, they’ve already won two more games this season, with a 2-0 win against Brockton High School and a 5-0 win against Wareham High School.
The Vineyard team’s goal is to get better each day.
“I am really proud about how hard they are working everyday,” Benoit said. “They come out here and give 110% and that’s all I can ask for as a coach – that they are coachable, working hard, and trying to get better.”
The purple and white group had back to back home games this week. On monday they went head to head with a formidable Nauset Regional High School team, losing the game 1-5.
The Island field hockey team bounced back on Tuesday, hungry for a win against a tough Sturgis Charter School East.
Starting the first quarter with high energy, the Vineyard team consistently controlled the ball in the offensive zone. However, Sturgis was able to sneak in a goal on their first run downfield as an exhausted Vineyard offense backchecked.
The Vineyarders regained ball control in the offensive zone to finish out the first quarter strong, but early in the second, Sturgis capitalized on another opportunity, stealing the momentum once again to go up 2 – 0.
The Vineyard defense kept the game close in the third quarter with strong performances from Elaina Cacchiotti (No. 15), Savannah Matthews (No. 20), Heather Dawley (No. 22), and Abigail Geary (No. 16).
Unfortunately with ten minutes left in the fourth quarter, Sturgis scored a third goal, sealing the victory for the Hyannis squad. But it was a constructive loss, coach Benoit said.
“I think our defense really kept us in the game,” she said “They say defense wins championships and we have a solid back three. Our defensive mid is also really solid back there so they really keep us in the game and we appreciate how hard they work.”
On offense, Isla Solon (No. 5), Charlotte Scott (No. 3), and Carolina Smith (No. 2), with skill and grit, generated opportunities in front of the net but were unable to squeeze the ball through the flurry of Sturgis sticks.
“I think our goal is getting better with each game,” said coach Benoit. “We have seen a lot of good progress with the last couple of games and we have to just keep pushing it and getting better every day.”
Hungry for their next win, the Martha’s Vineyard Regional high school varsity field hockey team will take on Brockton High School on Thursday Sept. 26 at 3:00 p.m. at home, for a game that was postponed on Saturday due to weather.
