Ashland Field Hockey

Last year the Ashland field hockey team suffered a tough season under new head coach Molly Bennet going 2-16. It was not the way the new coach wanted to begin her reign with the Clockers. Coming into this season Bennett’s squad already has one win through the first five games and looks to be playing better than the year prior.
“It was difficult last year as I was a new coach and we had a rather young team with only one senior,” the Coach said. “We considered last year a rebuilding type of season and this year we are looking toward definite improvement.”
The main core consists of a group of seven seniors who are determined to not only improve but also advance into the tournament for the first time in many years.
Bennet is looking for her four senior captains to lead the team onto the field and into the tournament. Forward Maddie Norfolk and defender Michelle Grasberger have been with the team all four years of their high school careers, while forward Ali Keaveny and defender Maggie Campion have been on the varsity squad the past three seasons.
“All four girls have been with the program since middle school and are great leaders as well as role models,” Bennett said. “They are hardworking individuals and I’m looking for them to motivate the younger girls and keep them positive.”
The three other seniors who will be looking to go out on top are forward/midfielder Kayla Soldi, midfielder Lizzy Bearer and defender Emily Wenzell.
If the Clockers are to succeed this fall the girls are going to need to put the ball in the net on a much more regular basis. Through the first five contests Keaveny has notched two assists, while Norfolk has scored two goals and added an assist. Two others who will be looked upon heavily on the offensive front will be juniors Kaitlin Loughlin and Brynn Moriarity, who was the team’s leading scorer last campaign.
“Last year we struggled with our scoring,” the Coach said. “One of our bigger goals this season is to score more. We need to make sure that we get on the board.”
During its two win season last fall it took the Clockers five games before they eventually beat the opposition’s goalie. This year Ashland hit the back of the net in the very first game of the season.
Although 1-4 thus far Ashland has held their own on the field. Except for the Holliston contest the Clockers have hung close to it opponents losing 2-1 to both Hopkinton and Dover-Sherborn and being shutout 2-0 to Tri Valley newcomer Norwood 2-0.
The last line of defense and a very important piece to the Clockers success will be sophomore goalie Madigan Flynn.
“Playing in only her second year on the varsity team, Madigan has shown that she has the ability to play the position,” the Coach said. “It’s awesome to have someone of her caliber back there. She is a very humble young girl and we are looking toward the future with her in the net. She’ll definitely help this team improve.”
The remainder of the team includes juniors Athena Lampiris (defense), Kaylee Palin (midfielder) and Emily Schwartz (midfield/forward); as well as sophomore defender Elena Morgan and midfielder Nicole Moriarity. Freshman defender Olivia Gleason wraps up the 2018 squad.
Despite the team’s record last year the girls continued to stay positive each and every time that they took to the field. When you’re losing on a regular basis it’s tough to stay focused, but the Clockers never gave up and that will power has led to a much tougher team this fall.
“Last year we were dead last in the Tri Valley League, but with the edition of Norwood the league was split up into two divisions. Ashland is the smallest school in the large division,” Bennett said. “We would like to find ourselves in the middle of that division come the end of the season.”