Jennifer Rose’s 20-yard blast from the top left of the circle,
with just less than three minutes remaining, gave Gilroy field
hockey an exclamation point to end its regular season
Wednesday.
The Mustangs beat visiting North Salinas 2-1 to stay undefeated
in the Mission Trail Athletic League.
GILROY – Jennifer Rose’s 20-yard blast from the top left of the circle, with just less than three minutes remaining, gave Gilroy field hockey an exclamation point to end its regular season Wednesday.
The Mustangs beat visiting North Salinas 2-1 to stay undefeated in the Mission Trail Athletic League.
Leading 1-0 at halftime after an Elise Ogle goal seven minutes into the contest, Gilroy found itself searching for a way to salvage Senior Night after the Vikings netted an equalizer with 6:30 left in the game.
Taking it’s 13th short corner of the contest, the Mustangs finally got a lucky break when Jenna Vivian slid the ball to Mandy Jo Torres at the top of the circle, who then passed left to a wide-open Rose.
Striking the ball flush, Rose sent a screamer low and left to pop the ball off the back of the cage and into the top-side of the netting.
The victory improves Gilroy’s record on the season to 21-1-2, and gives the Mustangs their eighth-straight undefeated season in the MTAL.
“That was super fun, a little nerve wracking,” Gilroy coach Adam Gemar said after the game. “I don’t think we played bad, they had good speed getting back on defense.”
With North Salinas keeping things close to the end, Gemar added that the matchup is developing into “the rivalry of our league.”
The win was an excellent way for the Mustangs to close out the season before entering next week’s Central Coast Section playoffs, which will start with a contest Thursday at 3 p.m. in Gilroy.
Along with the fantastic finish, Gilroy’s home fans were treated to a ceremony honoring seven seniors on the varsity squad after the contest. Laura Spellman, Austin Clifton, Stellie Nelson, Lexi MacPhail, Marissa McBride, Vivian and Rose will all be graduating in the spring.
Note: Laura Spellman played her first game Wednesday after missing several weeks with a lower leg injury. She is expected to be near full strength by next week’s playoff game, according to Gemar. Along with regaining her health, Spellman also recently picked up an offer to play college field hockey. She has given a verbal commitment to play at Cal next season.
