Sports Highlights 11.14.16

Pomfret has many talented players and Westminster was really able to hold its own and put up a fight. Still plagued with numerous injuries, many of the Martlets were forced to play the entire game. The first half was winding down and Pomfret was able to find the back of the net in the final minutes. The second half was more of the same, lots of great battles throughout the field. Pomfret was able to find the back of the net again putting the score to 2-0, which is how the game would end.

 

 

 

 

Nov. 9: Soccer-Second Girls’ 5 vs Pomfret School 1

The girls enjoyed an extra 90 minutes on the shoulder of route 84 tonight, but not before they had put together an impressive 5-1 victory at Pomfret. Natalie Rubun '19 got the scoring started in the sixth minute with a beautiful left-footed one-time strike of an Eve Cathcart '20 cross. Susie Mahoney '20 doubled the lead in the 15th minute when she finished off a nifty cross-box pass from Cecelia Raymond '20. The next two minutes would see Pomfret getting on the board only to have the lead go back to two when Kate Lovas '18 hit a nice one-timer after a ball ricocheted to her just outside of the box. The 3-1 score line held through halftime, thanks to a pair of brave saves by Alison Kijanka '20, snuffing out the only deep penetrations the hosts could muster. The Martlets continued to enjoy the majority of the possession in the second half despite spirited pressure from the Griffins. In the 55th minute, Maddie Dwyer '18 sent Mahoney in on a breakaway, and she coolly finished off her chance to make the lead 4-1. Cathcart finished off the scoring in the 72nd minute, winning a footrace to a through ball sent in by Mahoney. In addition to the scorers, Daniela Mays-Sanchez '20 played very solid defense, and Tori Kline ‘19 and Olivia Dague ‘19, seeing her first action of the season after rehabbing an injury, contributed very solid play in midfield. It's a shame that this group has just one game left to play.

   

The girls closed their season with an outstanding display of the progress they made over the last two months. Pinpoint passing and unselfish decisions created numerous scoring chances, some of which ended with great finishes. Susie Mahoney ‘20 scored twice, assisted by Eve Cathcart ‘20 and Kate Lovas ‘18. Cathcart closed out the first half scoring with a breakaway goal of her own. Abby Davis ‘20 got the fourth goal, stuffing home a Mahoney shot before it could be cleared by a defender. Later, Davis would send in a cross that would be volleyed home by Ridgely Green ‘20. The remaining tallies would come on breakaways, one by Cecelia Raymond ‘20, and the other by Audrey Froehlich ‘19, who converted a brilliant through ball from Tori Kline ‘19. As was the case all season, this group won as a team. In addition to the aforementioned players, Becca Gavel ‘18 narrowly missed heading home a free kick from Maddie Dwyer ‘18. Dwyer was a force all over the field, making her presence felt both at center back and center mid. The other backliners presented Hopkins with an impenetrable wall. Daniela Mays-Sanchez ‘20 simply could not be beaten. Dallis Alvarez ‘18 was particularly effective threading passes through gaps between the pressuring forwards. And McKenzie Roller ‘20, looking like a perpetual-motion machine, injected herself into the offense when she wasn’t busy chasing down Hopkins attackers. Lizzy McCoy ‘20 contributed strong tackling and a sense of calm at center mid and center back. Olivia Dague ‘19 displayed a full-spectrum game at holding midfielder, tackling fiercely one moment and feathering a pass to an open teammate the next. Natalie Rubin ‘19 played a great all-around game at outside mid, contributing timely defense as well as deft dribbling runs and penetrating passes. Finally, netminders Allison Kijanka ‘20 and Jenny Guider ‘20 cemented their reputations as the most courageous pair of keepers in the league. Congratulations are deserved for a fine season. 

 

Second Boys' Soccer threatened at various points throughout the afternoon, but found themselves outmatched at halftime, 3-0. Westminster came out with vigor in the second half and got on the board with a shot from Aly Tolba '18 from the top right corner of the penalty area. Kent answered moments later with a header off a corner kick to make it 4-1. Despite a few more good offensive chances the Martlets could not convert.

 

 

 

 

 

Second Girls’ Field Hockey took a long bus ride down to Greenwich Academy to play its final game. The team went to the field with energy and determination. During the first half the score was tied, 0-0, for most of the 25 minutes until GA scored within the last minute of the half. The Martlets kept up their game in the second half but unfortunately lost in the end 5-0. Kyani Jemmotte '20 had a great game saving at least eight goals and experienced her first stroke. Watching this team during its final game, you would not have known nearly half of the team was new to the field hockey this year. The team has worked well together and each person has improved. It's been a great season. A special thanks to the captains who never gave up and were always inclusive, Lucy Noel '18, Katie Kosior '18 and Sophia Gasser '18. The coaches are proud of the work the team has done this season. 

     

The Martlets came full circle as they traveled to Tabor Academy for New Englands, which is also where their season began back in September. This provided a great opportunity for the girls to see how much they have improved over the course of the season, and improve they have. Despite having sat out with injuries over the last couple of weeks, school record holder Oumou Kanoute '17 rallied and placed 14th, finishing just under 20 minutes for the second time this season and good enough for All-New England recognition. It was great that Kanoute was able to complete her last race and even though she didn't feel her strongest, she still was impressive from start to finish. Caroline Percival '19, who collapsed near the finish for her first race, came in second for the team. There can't be much more improvement than that. Her impressive improvement this season bodes well for the future. Liz Casey '18 crossed the line next, followed closely by Abby Hovey '18, Sarah Minella '17 and Bethany Winters '20. All three girls cut around two minutes off of their time on the same course earlier in the season. The five girls running the JV race also made similar, if not greater, drops in time and most of them earned a personal record. All 12 girls who raced faced challenges this season, and they all worked hard to overcome them and get faster and stronger. Most importantly, they did this together. They trained, raced and laughed as one. It has been an excellent group of Martlets who should be proud of their achievements. Full results here.    

The New England Prep School Division II championships were hosted by Tabor and Cushing in Marion, Mass., on a chilly, windless day. Westminster began its season here eight weeks ago, and so the opportunity to race the final meet here amidst a fast field was a great way to see how far the team has come. Aly Hussein ’19 from Tabor Academy led the entire field at the first mile, and he never faltered, finishing the 5K in a course record time of 15:40. Emmett de Kanter ’19, while close to the lead pack at the mile, faded in the second mile and ran a 16:43; this time was good enough to earn a ninth place finish in the meet and All-New England status. Captain Jordan Gabbidon ’17 was within seconds of his lifetime best in his final race in a Westminster singlet, while surging Teagan Stedman ’18 was only seconds behind him. Elliott Kennard ’19 was fourth for the team, and John Kuzminskas ’18 dropped over two minutes from his September time to finish fifth for the team. Justin Schuster ’19 broke 19 minutes by running a great final mile. The team ended up with 192 points, which matched Groton’s score but, for the second weekend in a row, Westminster’s opponent’s sixth runner was just ahead of the Martlets sixth runner and so finished in front. In fact, Westminster was only one point out of seventh; the squad was right in the mix of this competitive field. This group improved by almost two minutes on this course over the eight weeks of the season, a testament to consistent work each practice. Full results here.

 

The New England Prep School Division II championships were hosted by Tabor and Cushing in Marion, Mass., on a chilly, windless day. Some of Westminster’s harriers are minutes faster than they were eight weeks ago, so they were excited to see how they stacked up in this competitive field. The top of the field was very quick, but Tim Harris ’17 stepped up, running over 30 seconds ahead of his lifetime best to finish 17^th overall and earn a ribbon. The top six runners for Westminster all broke 20 minutes, and they averaged almost two minutes faster than the Second team had averaged in September on this course. Ryan Szykowny ’18 and Alex Ellis ’20 also ran their season bests; for Ryan, he was over six minutes faster than he had been in September. The rest of the scoring team was Connor Seeley ’18, Matt Cosentino ’18, John Rao ’17 and Chris Whipple ’18. Andrew Doucette ’18, who was up with Harris at the first mile, fell back with a cramp but still had an impressive surge at the end of the race. Overall, a fantastic end to a season in which the entire group committed themselves to getting stronger and faster each day. Full results here.