Martlets Fall to Taft

On a beautiful November afternoon, Westminster would celebrate their seniors by battling it out with Taft in their final Founders’ League contest of the season. The Martlets celebrated six incredible Sixth Formers who have all shown their outstanding commitment to Westminster Field Hockey over the past few years - Emma Budke, Dylan Bloom, Mckenzie Bloom, Olivia Fernandez, Ava Lynch, and Amelia Molin. 

From the start of the first whistle, both teams played their hearts out, battling for the 50/50 balls and working to capitalize on each opportunity. Taft maintained possession for the majority of the opening minutes, however it was Westminster who would strike first on their first look to net when Mckenzie Bloom ’23 sent a shot to net that Liv Fernandez ’23 stopped and flipped over the Taft goalkeeper and into the top of the net. Despite an outstanding effort by Cassie Goundrey ’24 in net, Taft would find an answer before the end of the quarter, capitalizing on a tip in just in front of the net. The second quarter saw more back and forth play between the two teams, but Taft was able to make two nice plays on defensive errors by the Martlets to bring the score to 3-1 at halftime. Westminster acknowledged that they were down, but knew that they were not out of this one just yet, knowing what they could do if they work together with a fresh thirty minutes on the clock. The Martlets found a new gear in the third quarter, showcasing more grit in the midfield to win the battles and make the most of their free hit opportunities. Hadley Crowther ’25 played an outstanding second half on the right sideline and Ava Lynch ’23 and Margaret Dilks ’24 made several big plays in the defensive end to keep the momentum going for Westminster. Lily Vincent ’25 brought Westminster within one when she made an impressive individual effort to win the ball back from a Taft defender inside the circle, confidently moved to space on the end line, and sent the ball right behind the Taft goalie who was rushing towards her. Taft once again answered Westminster’s call when they capitalized on another penalty corner with three minutes left in the quarter, bringing the score to 4-2. The Martlets wanted to leave it all on the field in the final 15 minutes and they did just that. After making a few adjustments on the field to have more offensive threats, Westminster found the back of the net again with just under ten minutes remaining in the game when Fernandez corralled a lose ball at the top of the circle and carried it in before sending it towards the net towards Vincent who was waiting to tap it in on the far post. This gave Westminster even more energy and they continued to push looking for the equalizer. After the Martlets outstanding efforts saw several chances in the attacking end that looked to tie the game, Taft was able to string together several key plays in the midfield that led to several chances in Westminster’s defensive circle. Goundrey made two outstanding saves, however a Taft forward made a nifty play in front of the net that would secure the two goal lead for the Rhinos once again with just three and a half minutes to play. Westminster did not give up and continued to give it their all, but they unfortunately ran out of time as the game finished 5-3. Westminster is exceptionally proud of how they competed today and know that sometimes, despite giving it your all, the outcome may not be what you hoped for - that is sports unfortunately! The team will regroup before hitting the road for the final two contests of the season at Berkshire and Governor’s.