It is several weeks into the season, and the Norwin Field Hockey team is working hard. With a 3-6-1 overall, and three recent wins to ride the momentum, the girls are ready to keep moving forward to success.
“The field hockey team had a rough start as we were getting used to a new team dynamic and redeveloping our basic skills—but after a few bumpy games at the start of the season, we have grown a lot as a team,” said captain and goalie, Ray Mamas (12). “Once we got our rhythm back, our game play has become more advanced and we began to play like a real team. The Norwin Field Hockey team’s defense has become a strong powerhouse when it comes to stopping the opponent’s attacks. The team’s offense has grown a lot from the start of the season and have proven that they can lead us in the right direction.”
And Mamas isn’t kidding about getting back that rhythm. Norwin’s first two games against Greater Latrobe on Aug. 26 and Penn Trafford on Aug. 28 ended in loss, with Norwin scoring 0 to 1 and 1 to 5 respectively. They came back with a brief win against Taylor Allderdice on Aug. 31, slamming out a 9 to 0 win. However, this win didn’t last in the Field Hockey team’s early season, where they lost their next four games.
“We lost many seniors—about 13–from last year which drastically affected the dynamic of the team,” said Mamas. “We had to relearn how to play as a team and get used to an underclassman heavy atmosphere, and we were limited to a Varsity only team which has affected the younger player’s field time and experience. Yet either way, our new players are improving greatly and beginning to love the sport.”
And Mamas was right, despite Norwin’s limited experience for players— with many other schools starting field hockey in elementary school— the team has only continued to improve, starting out a slight win streak on their Sept. 26 game against Hempfield, winning 1 to 0. Their next game, against Taylor Allderdice for the second time, ended in an 8 to 0 win for Norwin. Though in their most recent game, Norwin finished with a 1 to 1 tie against Oakland Catholic on Sept. 29, the underclassmen get better with every game, and even their fiercest competitors are having a harder time beating Norwin’s Field Hockey team.
“The team has definitely made vast improvement since last year,” said defensive midfielder, Karlie Johnson (10). “We have definitely been much more competitive against harder teams like Mt. Lebo and Pine Richland.”
With their upcoming game against Pine Richland on Oct. 4, Norwin’s Field Hockey team has high hopes, and they are ready to show off their improvement and fight for success.
“I am hoping to beat teams that we were not able to beat last year and change our reputation in the eyes of our opponents!” said Johnson (10).
