Wave Field Hockey Crushes the Competition
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Many Darien High School students know about the sports dynasties that have developed over the years. The nationally ranked boy’s lacrosse team has won five straight state championships. The girl’s volleyball has been even more impressive, holding a 140-game win streak throughout most of the decade and winning the state title seemingly every year. But a new team is rising to dynasty status: girl’s field hockey.
“Coach Mo Minnicus has turned the field hockey team at DHS into a force to be reckoned with,” sophomore team manager Jay Alter said.
Having won the last two FCIAC and state titles, and coming off a perfect 21-0 season, Darien field hockey is establishing itself as the perennial favorite in Fairfield County.
“The classes of 2009, 2010, and 2011 have tried their hardest to keep the program a powerhouse, and we are working on getting the next two classes ready to carry on the tradition,” junior Claire Dickson said.
Still, after losing a talented senior class, the team was not expected to be as dominant this fall. But with the help of a strong junior class, Darien has been able to fill the holes in the line-up left by the departing seniors. Now, after outscoring its opponents 66-3 and garnering a 13-0 record (with 11 shutouts), this squad is arguably better than ever. The dominance demonstrated has surprised many – even senior captain Taylor Wells. “The season has exceeded my expectations. I love everyone on the team and I think that allowed us to click on the field,” Wells said.
The field hockey team’s results thus far have generally been blowouts, but in the few (one in this case) close games the strong teams tend to show their character.
“One game that stood out was our night game in Ridgefield. It was on a Friday night, and everyone played the best they had ever played and we won 7-0. However, our most impressive game was our game against Greenwich. It was our toughest competition all season and we beat them 2-1. But because it was a tough, competitive game it was fun to play,” Wells said.
Though the defense has been superb all season, Wells made it clear the offense is just as integral. “Our defense starts on our offense, meaning our forwards are our first line of defense, so the other team has a harder time getting through three lines of defense,” she said.
Also, while the shutout streak may have been impressive, all that matters is the record. Because of this, Wells said, “There is no pressure on our team. We take one game at a time and no matter what happens, we tell ourselves we will be happy no matter what the outcome as long as we put 100 per cent into it.”
This mentality will be crucial going forth, as Darien still has a tough home game against New Canaan on Monday, before closing out the regular season against Staples on Tuesday. Also, the paths to the FCIAC and state championships will not be easy. In FCIACs, Darien will likely have to battle again against Greenwich, which showed it was capable of beating the Blue Wave in that 2-1 thriller on October 23. In both tournaments, Darien will have to get by rivals New Canaan and Wilton. But if this season has taught people anything, it’s that the team is not even thinking about the playoffs – they’re still focused on the next game.
