GHS field hockey squad shuts out RLS 2-0 to stay on pace for
first ever Tri-County Athletic League title
GILROY – When the Lady Mustang stickhandlers stepped on the Gilroy High field for Wednesday’s first-place showdown against Robert Louis Stevenson, the electric atmosphere provided by fellow classmates, parents, and faculty was nothing like they’d seen before.
They had the junior varsity football team in full gear and the cheerleading squad cheering them on. They had the most fans ever for a field hockey game – lining both sidelines like a giant human wall.
With a support group like that, the Lady Mustangs rose to the occasion – shutting out RLS for a 2-0 home victory to inch ever closer to their first Tri-County Athletic League title. The clutch performance upped Gilroy’s league mark to 8-1-1 and dropped RLS to 5-2-1 with two games remaining.
“I’m sure if we kept records or tabs on attendance, this is by far the biggest number of fans we’ve ever had,” head coach Erin Gemar said. “At one of our timeouts in the first half, I told the girls that all of Gilroy High School was here watching them play hockey. We’ve controlled the game for 29 minutes so let’s finish it.”
After battling to a scoreless tie at the end of the first half, the Lady Mustangs finally gave the hometown crowd something to go crazy about when senior Morgan Morales blasted a shot into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.
“We worked so hard. This game summed up our whole season that we really are a good team,” said Morales, who scored her first varsity goal at the perfect time. “The cheerleaders and the football team were awesome.”
The game was far from over with the Lady Mustangs clinging to only a one-goal lead and RLS pressing for the tying goal. But senior netminder Sam Sicard was impenetrable – making several key stops and kick-outs to keep her team ahead.
“It definitely gets me more focused (when we’re only up by one goal),” Sicard said. “My defense was playing awesome. I was telling them where to go and they were listening. I saw that everybody wanted it.”
Senior Maday Garcia sealed the game with two minutes remaining when she banged in her own rebound. Garcia’s first shot was partially blocked by RLS goalie Alessandra Benton – but the ball trickled past her. The Lady Mustang leading scorer hustled around Benton and smacked in her second shot.
“It was great,” said Garcia, who has eight goals this season. “I could hear all the football players. They pumped us up.”
The intense action shifted up and down the field as both teams worked off their defense to transition into the attack zone.
“It’s all about heart,” senior Vanessa Petrow said. “This feels great. This is better than any win since I’ve been a part of this team.”
The Lady Mustangs still have two games left against Santa Catalina on Friday away and then North Salinas on Nov. 6 at home before they can secure the league championship.
“We’re going to do it. We still have to try hard, but I just know we can do it,” said Sicard, who had a lot to do with the big crowd coming out. “I know all day at school we were all telling at least five people in class to come out to our game. The football team was here and the cheerleaders. They really pumped us up.”
When the final whistle blew, the Gilroy sideline erupted as players ran on the field in celebration.
“Sam Sicard and the defense had a lot to do with our win today. The two shots were beautiful, but the defense won this game,” said Gemar, who had GHS football coach and teacher Charles Ogle give the team its halftime pep talk. “No matter the score at half, we had a special motivational speaker, Chuck Ogle, reserved all week. He talked to the girls about that spark and sparks were flying today.”
UNBEATEN STICKS: Coach Armando Padilla’s junior varsity squad continued its season-long unbeaten streak with a 2-1 win over RLS. Linsey Kwon and Kayla Bercher scored the Gilroy goals, while teammate Rosie Perales was given the stick of the game. The JV-ers also defeated Carmel on Monday by a 1-0 margin on a strike from Jackie Moreno. The stick of the game was given to Andrea Chichester.
