Field Hockey Starts Season With 6 Wins in a Row

You might think that before starting her 40th year at the helm of the 2016 Branford field hockey team coach Cathy McGuirk might be ready to take it easy. Easier said than done.

Not only is she still coaching, but she’s still winning. Branford defeated Hamden last week 2 – 1, bringing the Hornets record for the season to 6 – 0. The win brought coach McGuirk’s overall record to 528 – 129-64 – 10.

“It has definitely been a great start to the season,” said the head coach. ​“Our players came up big against some tough teams early and have continued to improve.”

Coach McGuirk and her husband John, who has been her assistant for 37 years, and Robin McColl Axtell, a former player for coach McGuirk on her first team in 1977, and a 17-year assistant, have built a formidable track record over the years with the Lady Hornets, including winning 10 state championships.

All three coaches are members of the Branford Sports Hall of Fame. Cathy was inducted in 1994, John in 2011 and Robin in 2012.

In Monday’s game it looked like the Hornets were going to run away from the Green Dragons in the first half, scoring back-to-back goals in just over a minute. Freshman Brianna Shaw scored the first goal at 22:50 and senior Carol Frye scored at 21:40. Senior Kiersten Bjork assisted on both goals.

Here freshman Brianna Shaw (L) fires a shot that got by goalkeeper Bell Santelli and is seen between the legs of the Hamden defender headed to the back of the net.

Setting up to defend a penalty corner are (from left) Autumn McHenry, Carley Shea, Kiera Integlia, Sabrina Torcellini, and Alanna Grimm.

Hamden scored at 16:03 of the second half to make it a close game.

Here Kiersten Bjork brings the ball up field past a Hamden defender.

And here Junior LanLe Crotty puts pressure on the Hamden goalkeeper with a pass between the legs of a defender.

Both teams played well on defense. Hamden had 10 shots on goal and Branford had 12. ​“Defense is a big part of the game and we worked hard to keep Hamden out of our scoring area,” said coach McGuirk.

“We stress that all players must think defense and it seems to work. A great team effort for a total team win, which always includes our very supportive bench.”

Both goalkeepers played well. Branford’s Kiera Integlia had nine saves in the game and Hamden’s Belle Santelli seven. Here Integlia and her teammates enjoy an orange between periods.

​“This was our first game on our new turf, and our team adapted well to the new playing surface.” said the coach. The field was completely resurfaced, but there was a delay with the track portion that prevented any game being played on until Monday’s game.

Happy Hornets Alanna Grimm and Carol Frye give a thumbs up after beating Hamden.

Since the Hamden game the Hornets fell at Cheshire 2 – 0 for their first loss of the season but rebounded with three consecutive shutout wins, 4 – 0 at Lauralton Hall, 6 – 0 at North Haven and most recently 9 – 0 against Lyman Hall. Their record now stands at 9 – 1.

Their next game is tonight (Saturday) at home against Stonington. Game time is 6 p.m.

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