Senior captain Caroline Mazzola battles her Littleton opponent for the ball. (Photo by Bin Han)
The Bromfield varsity field hockey team and the Littleton Tigers played to a 1-1 tie on Wednesday, Oct 12, marking the second time this season the Trojans have tied their rivals. Bromfield’s record stands as 7-1-3, one win or tie away from qualifying for the district tournament.
Last year, the Bromfield team emerged as the 2010 Midland-Wachusett C league champions. However, this year, Littleton has returned tougher, and this tie leaves both teams on equal footing for the title.
The beginning of the game was dominated by Littleton’s forward players, as Bromfield was constantly pressured to play defensively to stop the countless attempts made by the Tigers.
About 11 minutes in, Littleton’s Kim Lozette smashed the ball at the corner of the Bromfield net, but it was swiftly deflected by Bromfield senior keeper Kaitlyn Drummey.
Lozette took another shot at the net about eight minutes later, and her shot was redirected to Littleton’s Erin Mealey, who made a daring second attempt. As the ball was chipped forward, Drummey extended her foot out with just enough time to keep the ball out of the net.
Bromfield made its own attempt at a goal about 20 minutes in, when senior right-forward Sarah Andrews sprinted through Littleton’s defense without missing a step. As Andrews popped her well-aimed shot, it was blocked by Littleton’s focused keeper.
Littleton attempted another goal near the end of the first half. Mealey sent the ball flying through the air only to have it blocked again by Drummey’s fast reactions.
Littleton kept Drummey busy in the second half. She managed to block off three consecutive Littleton attempts, each shot forcing her to shift from different sides of the net, 35 minutes into the game.
At 36 minutes, 21 seconds, Littleton’s forwards went head-to-head with Bromfield’s defense, as both teams crowded around the ball to gain control. Littleton’s Sarah Lizotte maneuvered around Bromfield’s jumbled defense, and slid the ball at the net; it was blocked again by Drummey.
The first score of the game came after 43 minutes, when Bromfield senior center-forward Anna Hadorn crossed the ball perfectly to Andrews, who ripped the ball upward and past Littleton’s goalie, giving Bromfield the 1-0 advantage.
The Bromfield lead was short lived, as Littleton brought the game to a 1-1 tie at 49 minutes, 50 seconds. Kim Lizotte received the ball from a penalty corner, and quickly passed it to Sarah Lizotte. With one more pass, Sarah Lizotte crossed the ball over to Lindsay Byrne who tucked the ball into the left corner of the Bromfield net.
Although the game ended with a tie, both teams said they were proud of their excellent performances.
“[The Bromfield players] have always been great competitors,” Littleton coach Diane Crory said. “It was a great game from start to finish and neither one of the teams gave up.”
Bromfield coach Sue Silver agreed. “We always step it up when we play Littleton,” Silver said. “We did very well. It was a wide open game. Our hits were good…I worried that we’d be too nervous, and that we’d let down, but we did very well.”
“We wanted that win so badly. Even though we came out with a tie, it was a great game,” Bromfield senior team captain Erin Molinaro said. “Mrs. Silver was proud of us. When we play a team like Littleton, we really step up our game to our best level. The intensity in the game was outstanding.”
