Field Hockey Blanks Florence 1-0 Monday

Field hockey entered play on Monday having gone unbeaten in four consecutive games, two wins and two ties. They extended that streak to five games with a 1-0 victory over Florence at home and are now 5-1-2 on the year.

Box Score

The Pirates had a handful of scoring chances in the first half, including a couple of corners, but could not convert any into goals. Florence also had a couple of chances, but none came close to turning into goals.

The game was scoreless at the break and head coach Gina Quaranta challenged her girls to score first and win the game. Her team responded with 21:01 left in the second half when Serafina Kennedy deposited a rebound into the cage for the game’s lone goal.

The goal was setup by the Pirates offense swarming the circle and taking a shot on goal through traffic. Kennedy was in the right place at the right time and was aggressive with her shot.

“When we have really great aggression, we do amazing,” Kennedy said. “Our record’s pretty good, but we need to work on our aggression. I think we can do that.”

The Pirates defense held tough as Florence attempted to tie the game just minutes later, but the Flashes could not come away with a goal.

“For our defenders to keep all of that pressure out of the circle, being able to step up on the ball when it comes near them, it’s really important for the entire atmosphere of the squad,” Quaranta said.

With 5:40 remaining in the second half, Florence took a timeout. The timeout benefited the Pirates more, who prevented Florence from passing midfield the remainder of the game.

The offensive pressure put on by the Pirates in today’s game was stifling, especially down the stretch. The minute the Flashes would reach midfield, the Pirates defense would secure the ball and move it deep into Florence territory.

“I was so proud about how the offense understood and worked hard to be the first line of defense,” Quaranta said. “To not let it out of the 25 or past the 50 is the best thing we can do as a team. We can’t make any mistakes on the defensive end if they can’t get it down there.”

Cinnaminson will take on Holy Cross for a second time this season Wednesday, September 30 at 3:45pm at home. The Pirates took down the Lancers in the season-opener, 3-2.

“We’ll have to be pushing more offensively,” Quaranta said about the matchup with Holy Cross.

“I’m very happy that we won today and winning 1-0 is great, but we will be tested really hard on Wednesday. It will be important for us to score more than one goal.”