McGuirk Achieves 500th Field Hockey Career Win

Cathy McGuirk, Branford high school’s longtime field hockey coach, won her 500th game Tuesday afternoon when the Hornets scored a 3 – 0 victory over Sacred Heart Academy in Hamden. It was a remarkable milestone and a sweet win for the head coach and her team, especially because it came at the opening game of the 2014 field hockey season. 

“I didn’t think I was going to get emotional, but I still have tears in my eyes,’’ said McGuirk who has coached 38 seasons as the Hornets’ coach and has built the team into a perennial state power. Over the years she has won ten state championships

“It’s the kids and the culmination of players you have done things with, parents you have done things with, and all of the coaches that I have worked with,” she said in an interview after the game. She mentioned Robin Axtell, now in her 15th season, ​“who was on my first team in 1977, and of course John McGuirk, her husband, who is the longest standing assistant coach (35 seasons), and all the kids that I have had over the years. It’s pretty special and there was a lot of hard work involved. Sacred Heart Academy (SHA) was tough against us.’’

Here are Hornets Autumn McHenry (L) and Ashlee Smistad (R) battling Jillian Laggis of SHA for the ball. Jillian’s grandparents all come from Branford to watch the game.

Branford was led by senior co-captain forward, Caroline Murphy, who notched two goals in the contest. Here Murphy steals the ball from 3 SHA players.

Murphy’s first marker was on a corner play, which got through the leg pads of Sacred Heart Academy junior goaltender, Olivia Riley, who netted three saves as she received a beautiful pass by senior co-captain, Meghan Shea. Shea collected two assists both on Murphy’s goals.

Freshman Jackie DaRos, former first selectman Unk DaRos’s granddaughter, scored the first goal of the season. Senior defender and Co-captain Karlee Kessler delivered a gorgeous pass to freshman DaRos to give the Hornets the 1 – 0 lead. 

The Hornets are led by their four co-captains: senior forward Cara Broughal, Kessler, Murphy, and Shea, all of whom later said they were so proud to be part of the team. Here a SHA player runs into Broughal’s elbow.

‘’We have really worked hard to get this,’’ Shea said. ‘’We are really proud of her,” she said of Coach.

“This win was really big for us today, especially the milestone,’’ Kessler said. ​“We have really worked well as a team. It’s all about working together.’’
Assistant Hall of Fame coach John McGuirk shared his thoughts after the game. ​“The majority of the kids are freshman and sophomores, and you want to win games. ‘’Winning this first game was nice. The seniors are the leaders, and they are doing a nice job, and they are also encouraging.’’

‘’It’s a total team effort,’’ Cathy McGuirk added. Here she is pictured with her co-captains.

The McGuirks, looking over the action during the game, understand the team concept.

On the flipside, SHA fell to 0 – 1. Branford’s defense was just too much for Sacred Heart to overcome. Here’s Smistad (L) deflecting a pass from a SHA player.

‘’We had a little slow start in the beginning,’’ SHA coach Jackie DeFrancesco said. ‘’We are a very right-sided team, and we definitely made some adjustments. Cathy McGuirk is a fantastic coach, and she deserves this win.”’

The team returned to Branford in a school bus decorated for the occasion. Here are the captains showing off their work.

Last night Ray Ingraham, the Republican majority leader of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), described McGuirk’s achievements on the field to an enthusiastic round of applause from members of the RTM. 

###