FRONTENAC – Prior to each game, the St. Joseph’s field hockey players write the word “Fun” on the underside of their wrists as a reminder to always play with joy.
And with perennial powerhouse MICDS paying a visit to St. Joseph’s on Thursday, the Angels understood that a victory could provide a signature moment in their season.
“We knew this was a very important game to win, and that it would say a lot about our team,” senior Meredith Dunn said.
Dunn scored her team-high eighth goal of the season, part of a three-goal barrage by the Angels in the opening quarter, and St. Joseph’s earned a statement win with a 4-0 triumph over MICDS at St. Joseph’s Academy.
It did not take long for Dunn to put her stamp on the game, stealing a pass in the midfield and setting up junior Anna Spalitto for a glorious scoring chance just 10 seconds into the contest.
“We were getting super-hyped in the locker room before the game,” Dunn said. “We all wanted to work to get this win.”
St. Joseph’s (5-2) entered the circle on three separate rushes in the first five minutes, and only the active sticks of MICDS defenders Alana Doherty and Virginia Portell and the right pad of goalkeeper Ellie Coverdell kept the ball out of the cage.
But after MICDS responded with two great scoring chances of its own, including the clanging of the left post, St. Joseph’s put together a four-minute stretch of brilliant teamwork that decided the game.
First, Spalitto send a long pass from her defensive end that found the stick of speedy freshman Mia Ryan, who raced ahead of the Rams’ defenders, entered the circle and aimed her shot perfectly inside the far post to open the scoring.
“I dribbled up and I tried (shooting) for the corner like we worked on in practice, and I achieved that,” said Ryan, who scored her third goal of the season. “That got our energy up, and we kept going.”
Less than 40 seconds later, Ryan entered the circle again and earned the Angels’ first corner opportunity. Junior Jo Carollo accepted the insert and blasted a shot that was blocked, but it trickled in front of the cage where Dunn and senior Lauren Miner were waiting.
“It was super-scrappy gameplay in the circle. We were poking at the ball, and I finally got strong and just sent it in,” Dunn said.
Dunn who scored 12 goals last season, notched her eighth goal in seven games. She credits an increased emphasis on looking to score once she enters the circle.
“We’ve been working a lot on just shooting, shooting, shooting. That’s really been a focus of our team,” Dunn said.
The Angels continued to apply pressure. Less than 90 seconds later, Carollo delivered a perfectly-paced pass into the circle that Spalitto directed inches wide. It was the second near-miss for Spalitto in the first 12 minutes.
But in the 13th minute, Spalitto found gold, depositing a pass from Ryan into the back of the cage and delivering a commanding 3-0 lead for St. Joseph’s.
“St. Joe was all over the field, wonderful block tackles, really relentless pursuit,” MICDS coach Lynn Mittler said. “They’re always athletes, but now they are clearly focused, so hats off to them on a tremendous effort. They are going to be a force to be reckoned with.”
MICDS (4-2), which had already scored eight goals in a game twice this season, including an 8-2 victory over Lafayette two days earlier, earned three corners in the final minute of the first quarter. A sneaky shot by senior Ellie Lochhead was kicked aside by St. Joseph’s goalkeeper Paige Jackson, and a rocket by Portell by blocked by the well-positioned stick of Carollo.
Carollo stymied several MICDS corner attempts before they gained traction, racing from the interior of her own goal to block straight-away shots and interrupt passes.
“I think it’s important to get out there on defensive corners, put pressure on them and get a stick on it,” said Carollo, who sported her signature orange glove during a stellar all-around performance.
In the third quarter, Carollo showed her prowess on offensive corners, receiving the insert and blasting a shot that hit an MICDS stick and settled in front of the cage, where Miner became the fourth different goal scorer for the Angels.
Last season, five of the Angels’ final six games were decided by one goal, including a 0-0 battle with MICDS that St. Joseph’s eventually won in 1v1 overtime shootouts. The Angels often struggled to score and have approached this season with a shoot-first mentality.
“The main thing we talk about before every game is how we’re going to shoot when we get in the circle. It’s really been a focus, and it’s why I think our forwards have been so successful scoring this season,” Dunn said.
And that aggressive approach, combined with their autographed reminders to have fun, allowed the Angels to pen a statement win on Thursday.
“We knew MICDS was going to come out strong, and we knew we had to come out stronger and set the tone for the rest of the season,” Dunn said. “It was important to set the standard that we could do hard things and play hard teams and still come out on top.”