Lady sticks blank S. Catalina, 8-0
GILROY – Score first, score early, score quick, and do not let up until there are 10 goals on the board.
That’s the mindset of the Gilroy High field hockey team going into every game this season. In Tuesday’s home match against Santa Catalina, the Lady Mustangs did score first, early and quick. They did not reach double digits – but the local stickhandlers cruised to an 8-0 win for their fifth straight league victory.
“We always tell them to just come out and play hard and score first, score early, score quick,” co-head coach Adam Gemar said.
“Our goal always is to score 10 goals. We don’t give up until we reach 10 goals,” added co-head coach Erin Gemar, who was even pulling for Santa Catalina to score its first goal of the season. “I was hoping they’d score. It was more for Santa Catalina because they’re really good sports and they enjoy the game.”
But Lady Mustang senior netminder Sam Sicard (two saves) and freshman understudy Stephanie Glenn (three saves) had other plans in mind – combining for the team’s fourth shutout in five league games.
The latest notch on their belts upped the Lady Mustangs’ T-CAL record to 5-0 and 10-1 overall. The only loss came at the hands of perennial powerhouse Los Gatos in a non-league contest.
“We’re proud of them,” Erin Gemar said. “But if we were to play Los Gatos today, we’d still lose. So we’re not there yet.”
After two straight post-season snubbing even with winning records, Gilroy – which is well on its way to a CCS berth – is taking nothing for granted this year.
“We’re trying to get seeded and be in CCS,” said senior forward Selida Banuelas, who netted a pair of first-half goals. “No matter who we play we keep the intensity up.”
Despite the lopsided final score, the intensity – carrying over from Friday’s come-from-behind victory over RLS – was there from start to finish.
“We were really intense that last 10 minutes,” said Banuelas of the three-goal surge past RLS last week.
After a Banuelas’ strike in the opening minute against Santa Catalina, junior captain Elena Ramirez jammed in a goal with the assist via teammates Maday Garcia and Crystal Quintanar. Then Banuelas found the back of the net again only 1:23 later to give Gilroy a 3-0 lead.
True to their motto, the Lady Mustangs kept on pressing – scoring three more goals for a commanding 6-0 lead to end the first half. Following Ramirez’s second strike, Garcia deflected in a Jackie Jarrell shot and senior wing Tracy Link finished off the first-half scoring on a feed from teammate Amanda Cooper.
The Gilroy High field was freshly mowed the day before by Art Silva – giving the finesse team an advantage with their precision passing style.
“That did help us out a lot, especially on sweeps,” said Banuelas, who was named her team’s player of the game.
Gilroy popped in two more goals in the second half – one from senior Meg Perkins and the other from Link. But in the final 40 minutes, the Lady Mustangs had other goals to attain rather than just running up the score.
“We asked every player to touch the ball before we shoot on goal,” Erin Gemar said. “We really told every player to work on their individual stickwork and individual tricks that they don’t usually use in games.”
Up next, the Lady Mustang stickhandlers will travel to North Salinas on Tuesday for a 3:30 p.m. start before moving along to York on Thursday.
JOIN THE FUN: The Sixty Minutes Field Hockey Club will kick off another exciting season on Monday for fifth through eighth graders wanting to learn the unique sport. Coach Alison Berry will head up the sessions that will take place from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. on the Gilroy High fields. Sticks and balls will be supplied to participants. For more information, call Coach Berry at 847-4743.
