Lady Knights Field Hockey 2010 Season
Game Reports
Note: The most recent game comes first; scroll down for earlier reports
10/14: San Pasqual 9, San Marcos 1
Although the score might suggest otherwise, this was a game that the Knights hugely enjoyed. It was a chance to pit themselves in a night game against arguably the best team in the entire county. Although the Eagles stormed to a 5-0 lead at half time, using their short corners to great effect, heads did not go down; throughout the entire game the defending was doughty and valiant. Cunningham perhaps summed up the Knights’ commitment to playing at a high intensity regardless of the score when she fired up the bench by knocking the Eagles’ best player off the ball with a barely disguised shoulder barge. Puentes, as usual was at the heart of the Knights’ best efforts, but the starting trio of Boehmler, Crossno, and Perez deserve significant commendation for their aggression and perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds. To their enormous credit, the San Marcos players tried to put into practice what they had been taught, but it was incredibly hard, given the opposition’s skill. After barely getting out of their own half in the first period, the Knights were able to forage forward a little more as the game progressed. In the final minutes, Heidt made an excellent break up the middle and was fouled desperately by an Eagles defender. From the ensuing short corner, Perez was on hand to pounce on a loose ball and send a beautifully placed shot into the goal. It was an ending that ensured the Knights finished the game on a high. It was no less than they deserved.
Game Ball: Puentes
San Marcos starters: Quarford; Boehmler, Perez, Crossno; Andrew, Puentes, Heidt, Ratledge; Wong, Baggerly, Steele
Subs used: Cunningham, van Hamersveld, Greig, Agnew, O’Brien, Larson, Keiser
Goal: Perez (2)
JV score: 1-4
10/12: Mission Hills 2, San Marcos 0
The second Avocado League game of the season ended in a desperately disappointing score and a 5th straight defeat at the hands of the Grizzlies. A cagey first half saw the Knights lose Wong and Heidt to injury. Andrew was also unavailable due to illness, so a rather patched up squad worked manfully but was not able to play effectively as a team. Outstanding goalkeeping from Quarford ensured the first half ended scoreless. On one occasion, phenomenal blocks on the line first by the Knights’ goalkeeper, and then by Crossno, when each time the Grizzlies seemed destined to score, kept the ball out of the cage. Unfortunately San Marcos was not able to make the most of its reprieve. Mission Hills looked far more likely to score, and with 10 minutes remaining, they slammed home a short corner, and then added a second on the break as the Knights pushed in vain for an equalizer. Despite the loss, Quarford remained enthusiastic in goal, throwing herself around at times with reckless abandon.
Game Ball: Quarford
San Marcos starters: Quarford; Boehmler, Perez, Crossno; Cunningham, Puentes, Heidt, Ratledge; Wong, Baggerly, Steele
Subs used: van Hamersveld, Greig, Agnew, O’Brien, Larson
JV score: 1-0
10/7: Vista 5, San Marcos 0
The Lady Knights slumped to defeat against a powerful and aggressive Panthers line-up that was missing their best player. Vista scored three goals before half-time, and San Marcos struggled to put any coherent passing moves together, mainly because they focused on passing up the middle of the field. This played into the hands of the Panthers’ midfield, which swarmed the player in possession, all too often forcing the error. The home team’s cause was not helped when Puentes limped off midway through the first half with a knee injury. A much improved second half at least saw the Knights attempt to play with a little more tactical intelligence. Perez initiated some nice switches of the field, while Cunningham, Andrew, and Steele finally seemed to understand how they could play successfully, and started to dominate their respective positions. Webb made a positive debut on the left wing. However, at the critical moment San Marcos either suffered from a lack of quick thinking or made the wrong decision. Still, there was something to be optimistic about for the rematch later in the month.
Game Ball: Perez
San Marcos starters: Quarford; Boehmler, Perez, Crossno; Andrew, Puentes, Heidt, Ratledge; Wong, Baggerly, Steele
Subs used: Cunningham, Webb, van Hamersveld, O’Brien, Agnew
JV score: 0-1
10/1: San Marcos 6, Del Norte 0
In an exhilarating display of attacking hockey, the Knights put together one of the best 30 minutes they have played in recent years to effectively settle the contest by halftime. The passing, commitment, and movement that had been present for parts of the season already were at their best in this game, but for once, San Marcos' finishing was deadly, and it made all the difference. The Nighthawks simply had no answer to the Knights' relentless pressure.
Early on, the pattern was established. Calm and patient in defense, but swift and deadly down the right and through the middle in particular, the Knights put together several excellent passing moves. 10 minutes into the game, the outstanding Katie Andrew intercepted a 16-yard hit and released Wong, who had a free run into the circle and finished neatly under the goalkeeper. Goals two and three were similar, and were a testament to the anticipation and movement of the forwards, especially Kendall Baggerly and Hannah Steele. First, Heidt's hard hit cross was beautifully tapped in by Baggerly, and with 5 minutes to go until half time, Heidt's hit into the circle was tipped by Wong and again Baggerly was on hand to finish. After a Del Norte time out, the Knights added a hammer blow just before half time. A short corner was worked to Wong, and the cross to the far post was emphatically buried by Crossno.
Despite a resurgent Nighthawk squad that, to their credit, refused to give in, San Marcos played comfortably enough. Chase Puentes continued from where she left off in the first half - breaking up attacks, passing intelligently, and covering vast quantities of the turf. Katie Andrew also typified the team's performance: showing aggression and purpose with every touch. Puentes got the goal (her first Varsity score) she so thoroughly deserved, deflecting Heidt's clipped pass from a short corner. And Heidt herself rounded off a fine individual performance with a beautifully placed shot. There was still time for Steele (who had her best game of the season by far) to launch a mazy run towards the circle, but her reverse-swept shot was kept out by the Nighthawks' defense. With the bench emptied, several other players were able to make an impression of their own, with Emily Larson and Meaghan O'Brien proving to be more than adequate in defense.
A great evening for the Knights: a third win in a row and a 7-4 record heading into league play.
Game Ball: Heidt
San Marcos starters: Quarford; Boehmler, Perez, Crossno; Andrew, Puentes, Heidt, Ratledge; Wong, Steele, Baggerly
Subs used: Larson, Cunningham, Agnew, Greig, O'Brien, Keiser, Larson, Enciso
Goals: Baggerly 2 (4), Wong (4), Crossno (1), Heidt (3), Puentes (1)
Assists: Heidt 3 (5), Wong 2 (5), Andrew (1), Puentes (2)
Shutout: Quarford (4)
JV score: 4-0
9/28: San Marcos 1, Helix 1 (after OT, San Marcos wins 2-1 in sudden death strokes)
At 7:25 on a muggy La Mesa evening, Ashley Quarford crouched to stop the Highlanders' second penalty stroke and seal victory for the Lady Knights. The victory had seemed inevitable during the first half, unlikely after Helix scored with 9 minutes to go, and cruelly close when Quarford leaped to her right but could not quite keep out the first stroke in the shootout. It was a curious game. San Marcos had 20 short corners, but struggled to put even half of them in play. Helix had the best chances in overtime, and yet had seemed dead on their feet after fifteen minutes of the first half.
San Marcos stayed with the new line-up that had served them well against Mt. Carmel, with Jayne Boehmler in right defense, Katie Andrew in right midfield, and Chase Puentes dropping back to accomodate Cassidy Heidt in midfield. It worked well. All four played very confidently indeed. The first half saw the Knights create chance after chance. Ratledge and Baggerly linked well down the left, and Heidt consistently made attacking runs into the 25. However, the final ball usually lacked pace, and there was a distinct absence of aggression and movement from the forwards in the circle. Steele had the best chance, but her shot was very well saved by the Scotties' keeper. Even the barrage of short corners failed to put much pressure on the home defense. Losing Heidt to injury before the break took some of the sting out of the offense, but most of the time, the Knights' defense was firm, and the feeling at half time was that, as long as San Marcos persevered, they would ultimately prevail.
The second half was a much more even affair. As the Knights committed more players forward, holes started to appear at the back, and Helix used their pace and aggression to launch raids that seemed more and more likely to succeed. Cunningham, thrust into the role as attacking center midfield, played well. At the other end, twice the ball rolled tantalisingly across the face of the goal with San Marcos attackers flat footed and unable to respond. For all the away team's dominance, it came as little surprise when Helix broke down the right and muscled their way into the circle. Quarford stopped the first shot, but the rebound was tapped in to send the Helix bench and supporters into raptures. Their joy, however, was short-lived. With time running out, San Marcos poured forward and won yet another short corner. From it, Andrew's shot was saved by the goalkeeper, but Ratledge, ever the opportunist, pounced on the rebound and in the ensuing melee somehow forced the ball over the line.
A frantic overtime saw lion-hearted performances from Puentes, Ratledge, and Andrew in particular. Helix were unfortunate not to win it when a vicious goalmouth scramble just wouldn't break for them thanks to aggressive goalkeeping from Quarford and heroic defending from Crossno. Once the game went to sudden-death strokes, however, the Knights were composed and purposeful. Both Andrew and Perez converted their shots with aplomb, and Quarford did the rest.
Game Ball: Ratledge
San Marcos starters: Quarford; Boehmler, Perez, Crossno; Andrew, Puentes, Heidt, Ratledge; Wong, Steele, Baggerly
Subs used: Greig, Cunningham, Agnew
Goals: Ratledge (3), Andrew (4), Perez (1)
JV score: 4-2
9/23: San Marcos 1, Mt. Carmel 0
The Knights relied on a late Michelle Greig goal to overcome a stubborn Sun Devils team who defended doughtily and occasionally threatened on the break. Between the 25-yard lines, San Marcos dominated. The passing and movement was generally excellent, with Puentes and Heidt to the fore, as usual. However, once the ball reached the opponents’ circle, the Knights were hurt by their inability to shoot quickly. Shots that did get off were either too soft, ill-advised, or straight at the goalkeeper. Heidt had the best chance of the first half; a typical languid, mazy run ended with her bursting into the circle, but she opted to pass instead of shoot, and Steele was unable to convert the opportunity. As the game processed, the Knights did not panic, kept up the pressure, and were finally rewarded when Greig poked home a loose ball with 11 minutes to go. A late Mount Carmel counter-attack almost broke through, but Perez, Crossno, and Boehmler (playing her first game in defense with great reassurance) ensured that Quarford did not have to make a save.
Game Ball: Boehmler
San Marcos starters: Quarford; Boehmler, Perez, Crossno; Andrew, Puentes, Heidt, Ratledge; Wong, Steele, Baggerly
Subs used: van Hamersveld, Greig, Cunningham
Goal: Greig (3)
9/21: Valley Center 3 San Marcos 1
A trip up into the hills to play the Jaguars started with high hopes, but ended in bitter disappointment as the Knights conceded two goals in a testy second half to lose their 4th game of the season. Although Valley Center is always a tough place to play, and the Jaguars were the better team on the day, the Lady Knights felt that they had not done themselves justice at critical times.
A very open first half saw both sides play positive, attacking hockey. Valley Center used both long free hits and runs from midfield to put pressure on the San Marcos defense, while the Knights used some neat build up play to release the forwards into space. Chase Puentes was at the heart of most of the moves, and Cassidy Heidt provided much of the cutting edge from her new attacking midfield position. Quarford made an excellent save from a short corner, and following that, the Knights had the ball in the goal, but it was disallowed for a raised ball. Hannah Steele looked good on the ball, but the Knights were having trouble burying their chances. However, it was the Jaguars who struck first. They had threatened regularly, so it was no surprise when they scored with a hard hit shot from a short corner. Almost immediately, however, the Knights countered, winning a short corner of their own. From the set piece, Perez found Wong, and her hard cross was turned in by the ever-opportunistic Tracy Ratledge. Despite a spate of Valley Center short corners as time expired, the Knights went into the break 1-1, and confident of prevailing in the second half.
It was not to be. The second half was characterized by poor technique in the tackle, bad decisions in the pass, and a lack of aggression off the ball. Few Knights covered themselves in glory, and what turned out to be the game winner was scored midway through the second half. Having just survived the 12th Jaguar short corner of the afternoon, the Knights were looking to attack down the right. However, the ball was given away, and the VC left forward, virtually unopposed, ran through two half hearted tackles and beat Quarford at her near post. As the frustration mounted, so did the intensity of the tackling, and Heidt received a yellow card for her part in an ongoing battle with the Valley Center captain. Down to 10 players, the Knights conceded a third goal when a blocked shot looped tantalizingly over the head of Quarford and settled in the net.