On Friday, Oct. 10, varsity field hockey faced off against Marin Catholic in a riveting matchup ending with a final score of 2-2. With the tie, the Giants were able to secure first place in the Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) and are well-prepared to advance to playoffs.
Leading up to the game, energy was high for Redwood, both players and spectators alike. Sophomore and offensive forward Moni Hewlette reflected on this collective motivation.
“This was one of the biggest [and]highest energy games we’ve ever played,” Hewlette said, “Everyone brought their emotion into this game.”
Junior goalie Meredith Levine could feel the energy on the defensive side throughout the game as well.
“We were excited [and] knew that it was going to be a big game,” Levine said. In the first half, the ball was back and forth, forcing both sides to step up and take risks on offensive plays. At last, Marin Catholic scored a goal, forcing the Giants’ defense to increase their pressure and fight back. Hewlette felt that a particular defender led this charge, senior Nina Baker.
“Nina always shows up with so much intensity every game. She saves our team [almost] every time there’s a fast break on the other side,” Hewlette said.
Senior Lucy Miller also had many interceptions of the ball, giving the offense more opportunities to score. As time was running out before halftime, junior middle Claire Johnson scored the first goal for Redwood in a thrilling break towards the middle, causing cheers to erupt from the sideline.
“[After] the first goal we knew that we could score and come back,” Levine explained.
Following celebratory embraces, the team huddled up to talk strategy for the following half.
Several minutes after the players returned to the field, Marin Catholic scored another goal against the Giants, as time ticked away. With just under a minute left, Hewlette made a run towards the goal with the ball and hit a shot around Marin Catholic goalie, Gianna Rinaldi, to make the score leveled at 2-2.
This isn’t the first time the Giants will be entering the next level of their season as number one in the conference.
“This is our seventh time in a row going to [the] playoffs as the number one seed. The intensity [and] pressure [are] high, but we’re here striving to make greatness,” Hewlette said.
The Giants have three more games before the first round of MCAL playoffs, and they will be facing Convent on Tuesday, Oct. 14 on the Redwood Ghilotti field.
