WHS Field Hockey Loses in Semifinals

One team was able to execute their game plan while the other was not.

On Tuesday night, the WHS Warriors were on the wrong side of that factor as the team’s hopes of going to the Fairfield County Interscholastic Conference (FCIAC) finals were squashed by Darien in a 3-0 loss at Dunning Stadium in New Canaan.

Darien converted two penalty corners in the first half and Wilton was never able to recover and find their game.

“We were not able to finish tonight,” said WHS head coach Deirdre Hynes. “Our opponent was able to capitalize on their corners and other opportunities and we simply were not able to do that.”

Throughout the first half, Wilton struggled to control the ball, turning it over several times and taking undisciplined penalties, leading to Darien penalty corners.

Darien took advantage of Wilton’s mistakes early in the game and scored less than five minutes into the first half when Darien junior Sophie Doering converted on a penalty corner off a tremendous pass from junior Ellie Riegel.

With less than four minutes to go in that same half, Darien once again capitalized when junior Sam Johnston passed the ball to Riegel and Riegel stickhandled through three Wilton players and put one past senior goalkeeper Steph Fricke.

“We fumbled the ball a lot in the first half,” admitted Hynes. “Against a strong team like Darien, you cannot have a bad 30 seconds, let alone 30 minutes.”

Wilton struggled out of the gate in the second half as Darien scored less than two minutes into it. Doering got the ball at the side of the net in the offensive zone and fed it to wide-open senior Anna Heck, who put it in to give her team a 3-0 lead.

WHS played much better in the second half, limiting Darien’s offensive opportunities, controlling the midfield area, and maintaining possession of the ball in Darien’s zone more than in the first half.

However, it was not enough as Darien heads to their second straight FCIAC finals while WHS waits to see who they will play in the State tournament sometime next week.

“Darien executed their game plan tonight,” said Hynes. “Unfortunately, we were not able to do that.”

Hynes admitted that her team still has some learning to do when it comes to playing in the playoffs.

“We were inconsistent in the two games we played this postseason,” admitted Hynes. “We need to learn how be more consistent in the playoffs.”