First-half score boosts Mustangs’ confidence
FIELD HOCKEY MARRIOTTS RIDGE 3, RIVER HILL 0
Scoring first has been a rarity for Marriotts Ridge during the first half of this field hockey season.
The Mustangs often surrender the first score before eventually finding their offensive and defensive rhythm, coach Stacie Gado said. A lot of their better performances so far this year have come after intermission.
Thursday’s Howard County showdown with River Hill was no different, as Marriotts Ridge scored twice in the final period while dominating possession, shots on target and penalty corners. However, ask Gado about the main difference in Marriotts Ridge’s 3-0 road victory, and she’ll point to the final minutes of the opening half.
That’s when Gracie Kennedy scored the team’s first goal off of its first corner, setting the tone in a shutout victory that keeps the Mustangs undefeated in league play.“The confidence of scoring first, scoring on a corner, that definitely brought their intensity up to keep them rolling through the second half,” Gado said.
Gado admitted her group has struggled to convert penalty corners throughout what has been an up-and-down season against some of the best competition in Howard and Anne Arundel counties. For example, Marriotts Ridge (5-4 overall, 3-0 Howard County) earned seven second-half penalty corners and came up empty in a 5-0 defeatto Severna Park on Monday. Before that, the Mustangs combined to score just three times in multi-goal losses to Chesapeake and Arundel.
But following those three losses, the Mustangs regained their confidence with a 2-0 win over Atholton on Tuesday and continued to build momentum with another shutout against a strong River Hill squad.
Thursday’s matchup went back and forth for the opening 25 minutes with neither team producing a penalty corner or a dangerous scoring opportunity. Then came the Mustangs’ first corner at the 5:09 mark that changed the complexion of the game.
The play began with Kennedy inserting the ball to junior forward Emma Gladstein at the edge of the circle on the left side, and with little hesitation, Gladstein rifled a shot towards the cage. By that point, Kennedy was stationed on the left post and able to redirect the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Caroline Kral (10 saves), off a River Hill defender and across the goal line to put Marriotts Ridge ahead, 1-0. kstackpole@baltsun.com twitter.com/@kylesfstackpole
The Mustangs often surrender the first score before eventually finding their offensive and defensive rhythm, coach Stacie Gado said. A lot of their better performances so far this year have come after intermission.
Thursday’s Howard County showdown with River Hill was no different, as Marriotts Ridge scored twice in the final period while dominating possession, shots on target and penalty corners. However, ask Gado about the main difference in Marriotts Ridge’s 3-0 road victory, and she’ll point to the final minutes of the opening half.
That’s when Gracie Kennedy scored the team’s first goal off of its first corner, setting the tone in a shutout victory that keeps the Mustangs undefeated in league play.“The confidence of scoring first, scoring on a corner, that definitely brought their intensity up to keep them rolling through the second half,” Gado said.
Gado admitted her group has struggled to convert penalty corners throughout what has been an up-and-down season against some of the best competition in Howard and Anne Arundel counties. For example, Marriotts Ridge (5-4 overall, 3-0 Howard County) earned seven second-half penalty corners and came up empty in a 5-0 defeatto Severna Park on Monday. Before that, the Mustangs combined to score just three times in multi-goal losses to Chesapeake and Arundel.
But following those three losses, the Mustangs regained their confidence with a 2-0 win over Atholton on Tuesday and continued to build momentum with another shutout against a strong River Hill squad.
Thursday’s matchup went back and forth for the opening 25 minutes with neither team producing a penalty corner or a dangerous scoring opportunity. Then came the Mustangs’ first corner at the 5:09 mark that changed the complexion of the game.
The play began with Kennedy inserting the ball to junior forward Emma Gladstein at the edge of the circle on the left side, and with little hesitation, Gladstein rifled a shot towards the cage. By that point, Kennedy was stationed on the left post and able to redirect the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Caroline Kral (10 saves), off a River Hill defender and across the goal line to put Marriotts Ridge ahead, 1-0. kstackpole@baltsun.com twitter.com/@kylesfstackpole
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