Martlets Tie Hotchkiss

Westminster made the trip to Lakeville to take on a talented Hotchkiss team in what would be an evenly matched, back-and-forth affair. Westminster struggled to find their pace at the start of the game, finding themselves on their heels for most of the first half as Hotchkiss set the tone early and saw several chances at Westminster’s cage in the opening minutes. Westminster battled, playing their best team defense of the season in the midfield. Olivia Gordon ‘24 worked tirelessly to redefend the quick Hotchkiss transition and Sydney Courtmanche ‘24 made several key plays while stepping into the midfield for the day. The Martlets showed some uncharacteristic mistakes in the attacking and defensive 25s, struggling to find momentum on the offensive end, with credit due to the disciplined Hotchkiss defense, and giving up several corners in the defensive circle. The defensive corner unit of Gordon, Dylan Bloom ‘23, Allysen Whitehead ‘25, Margaret Dilks ‘24, and Cassie Goundrey ‘24 did a phenomenal job shutting down a flurry of Hotchkiss corners. Goundrey had a fantastic day in net, coming up with several huge saves when the team needed it most. The Martlets regrouped at halftime and set out to play with a more confident presence on the field. The team continued to play strong team defense, but also began to create more offensive chances as well, finally getting the looks inside the attacking circle that they have been used to seeing all season. In the final minutes of the second half, Westminster dominated the play and saw several outstanding looks at the cage, however they could not find the final touch on the ball to get it over the endline. Overtime saw more back and forth action as both teams created scoring opportunities off of open play and corners, however both goalies made tremendous saves to keep the game scoreless. Westminster will look to regroup on Thursday and Friday while preparing to travel north to Williston on Saturday afternoon for the final matchup of the week.