The Windham field hockey team is starting to gel.
Tuesday Windham defeated Massabesic, 4-2, at home for its second win in as many games.
“Junior varsity has always won,” said coach Cory Merrill. “They are a wining team. A lot of these girls – 11 of them – came up from junior varsity last year. They are used to winning and they are young. They aren’t used to the tradition of Windham losing.”
But Windham is more than just a team of hungry underclassmen, according to Merrill they have senior leadership as well.
That combination of newcomers and veterans was apparent on Windham’s final goal Tuesday.
Senior Hannah Gallagher took a long shot from the outside and Lesley Mitchell, a sophomore playing her first year at the varsity level, deflected it in.
“It was a great, great deflection,” Merrill said. “I always talk in practice about having your stick down in front of the cage. You don’t have to work; it will be an easy goal. That’s what she did. I was ecstatic.”
Gallagher was credited with an assist on the play and was equally excited about the goal.
“Those are my favorite goals,” she said. “When they’re unexpected and they just get deflected in.”
According to Mitchell, she wasn’t even expecting to deflect the ball.
“It just happened,” she said.
Getting an assist and not a goal was no problem for Gallagher.
“It was still fun anyway,” she said. “It’s a team. I love helping even if I can’t score.”
Fortunately for Windham, she can score – Gallagher had two goals in the game. Newcomer Katie Eastman also scored.
For those keeping track, that’s two goals in the game for the newcomers and two from seniors. So with equal parts being contributed by experienced veterans and talented rookies, to who does this Windham team belong?
“I think it’s everyone together,” Merrill said.
Talking to her players, it’s tough to disagree.
“Everybody is better friends this year on the team this year,” Gallagher said. “We are having a lot of fun and everybody likes each other – that helps.”
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