Three-year starter Keagan Jewell was the only member of the 16-man field hockey roster to play in a state tournament game. But 14 other players got the taste of the tournament last month in Gloucester’s 2-4 loss to the #10 ranked Bedford Buccaneers.
While the game was a neck-and-neck battle during the first quarter, the seasoned Buccaneers took an early lead within the first two minutes of the game. While the clock dwindled to halftime, Bedford’s Stella Day and Elena Rodriguez knocked two more goals past Jewell.
Jewell stopped 24 shots in the net throughout the game while her Bedford counterpart stopped six. One of Jewell’s saves should have been tallied at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but a controversial call caused a penalty stroke to occur.
Jewell dove across the net in an attempt to block a Bedford shot and the ball slid to her. Buccaneer forwards swarmed the junior goalkeeper in an attempt to maintain possession of the ball before the penalty was called. The referees claimed Jewell trapped the ball for an illegal amount of time, making it unable for Bedford to collect the ball.
Sophomore standout Sophia Demeo easily netted the ball during the stroke, giving Bedford a considerable 4-0 lead midway through the fourth.
While the game may have appeared gone in the eyes of spectators, the young Fishermen roster refused to go down without a fight.
At the 6:41 mark, sophomore all-conference selection Olivia Madruga scored off a pass from freshman Olivia Madruga at the top of the circle.
Gloucester’s second and final goal of the night came from Elliana Parsons. The junior collected a pass from captain Emma Carrapichosa during a penalty corner, shooting the ball to the right corner of the net.
Gloucester had a multitude of chances throughout the game to score, most of which occurred during the final quarter. As usual, head coach Lauren Riley-Gove praised the performances of Madruga, Jewell, Isla Black and Fiona Black. Madruga and Jewell were picked to be a part of the NEC All-Conference team this season.
The team ended with a 9-9-1 record. The entire roster, with the exception of captain Ivana Ferrara, will be back in full force next season.
