FIELD HOCKEY HEADED TO CHSL FINALS AFTER WIN AGAINST ACADEMY OF THE SACRED HEART
The Greenhills field hockey team earned a big 1 – 0 win against Academy of the Sacred Heart (ASH) on Tuesday, Sept. 26. Not only was it the Catholic High School League (CHSL) semifinals, but it came just five days after the Gryphons battled ASH to a 0 – 0 draw in regular season league play.
The rematch was another defensive showcase, with the score once again 0 – 0 at the end of regulation play. But this time it was a playoff game, which meant it would be decided in a shootout, and the Gryphons put their shots on target while goalie Maddie Miller ’24 made stops when it mattered most, earning the win over ASH and a trip to the CHSL finals.
“It’s not often you get to see the same team twice in a season, let alone within a week,” said Jill Dixon, first year field hockey head coach at Greenhills. “We made some attacking adjustments, had some great practices with everyone being present and focused to get the most out of them, and it paid off.”
The Greenhills field hockey team has been on a tear since starting the season with two losses in its first three games. It won six straight leading up to its only draw of the season against ASH on Sept. 21, and the team continues to improve at every level of the game.
Photo credit: Shawn Ye, taken at the September 5 game against Cranbrook
“We have a great group of upper class players who are moving into leadership roles,” said Dixon. “And we have some younger players who have stepped up in some really fun and exciting ways— a few that have made some immediate impacts with our varsity program—so it’s really exciting to see some of that.”
One of those upper class players who had an outsized role in Greenhills’ win was goaltender Maddie Miller. Her work in front of the net during Tuesday’s win was some of her best of the season.
“Maddie Miller made a couple of crazy saves at crucial moments,” said Greenhills Athletic Director Tom Ward, who was on the sidelines during the game. “Shootouts put a lot of pressure on the goalie, but Maddie didn’t let it faze her.”
