Martlets Fall to Govs

Westminster made the long trip to Byfield, Mass. to take on a talented Governor’s Academy squad. The Martlets came off the bus ready to play, and used the first 15 minutes to settle in and find their pace of play after a week off and a long bus ride. Allysen Whitehead ’25, Dylan Bloom ’23, and Sydney Courtmanche ’24 did a nice job making adjustments in the midfield to slow down Governor’s counter attack. After several back and forth calls in the midfield early in the second quarter, Govs earned possession and worked to earn a corner and capitalized on a redirected ball in front of the net. After regrouping at halftime, the Martlets started the second half determined to find an answer, however Governor’s was able to put two more in during the opening ten minutes of the third. Westminster regrouped with a time out and went right back out to the field to make the most of the final four and a half minutes of the quarter. The Martlets put the pressure on and capitalized off of a broken penalty corner when Allysen Whitehead ’25 collected a rebound at the top of the circle and sent it through a crowd to the back of the net to get one back for the visitors. Westminster lined right back up and quickly earned possession and a few chances to add yet another goal, but the clock expired. The fourth quarter saw more back and forth play and excellent pressure from Westminster, however the Governor’s goalie made several key stops to keep the Martlets off the board. Despite their efforts, time unfortunately ran out the Martlets and they could not overcome the deficit. Margaret Dilks ’24 had an outstanding day in the backfield, stepping up on several plays to regain possession for Westminster and distribute to players up field. Westminster’s attacking unit had many nice connections on the field all day and did all but put the final touch on the ball to get it over the goal line in the second half. The Martlets close out the regular season with an outstanding 12-5-1 record and will wait to see if they have earned that chance to play next week in the NEPSAC Class A tournament.