By Alexys DeMaria
On Monday, Fountain Valley High School varsity field hockey closed out their 2021 season with an unfortunate loss to Great Oak High School 0-2.
The first and second quarters of the game were filled with back and forth between the teams, with several valiant pushes by the Lady Barons’.
Great Oak players pierced the Barons’ defense and scored a goal towards the end of the second quarter beginning the game with a 0-1 lead. With eight minutes remaining, the Barons’ made a strong advance on Greak Oak’s goal but did not score.
Junior goalie Katherine Drechsler expertly blocked a shot on the Barons’ goal early in the third quarter. The Wolfpack made two more advances on the Barons’, with one push resulting in a second goal bringing the score 0-2.
The Lady Barons ended the third quarter with several strong drives to Great Oaks’ goal, but could not puncture the opposing defense.
Attempting to regain a lead, the Barons’ attacked the Wolfpack’s defense, but the game ultimately ended in back and forth possessions.
Coach Mary Ellen Esquer is excited for the upcoming season, and proud of how far the team has come, win or loss.
“We played hard, all the way to the end and just seeing the improvement over the year, that’s what we were trying to do this year, and we did [improve],” Esquer said.
With 10 seniors finishing their last season, Esquer hopes a new influx of players will help expand and continue the program.
“There’s no experience necessary. All of our players when they first came out [to the program], they had never played or even seen field hockey before,” she said.
This season allowed Coach Esquer see where the team fell short and highlighted skills that they could develop in the off-season. She aims to use this knowledge to improve the program even more.
“This season is over but we’re going to keep moving forward,” Esquer said.
