Varsity Field Hockey started off the season strong, beating the Cougars of Austin Prep, 4-1. Though dominant in the circle drawing multiple corners and shots, SPS ended the first period, 0-0. After a two-minute break, SPS came out firing. Despite being down a player, SPS generated its first scoring play of the season. Charlotte Cohen passed the ball left to Erin Flaherty, who fired a shot on net. The shot was thwarted by Austin Prep's goalie, but Liza Demain was there to clean up the rebound and put SPS on the board, 1-0. Minutes later, coming down the left side, Addie Hayne crossed the ball to Gracen Arndt, who found the corner of the net, making it 2-0. After a series of corners, Demain dodged the center back and passed the ball to Maddy Humber on the right side. Humber gave a beautiful through pass to Flaherty, who was waiting at the stroke to bury it in the back of the net. The Big Red took a 3-0 lead going into halftime. With minutes left in the third quarter, SPS generated a breakaway with a stream of passes from Flaherty to Arndt to Demain, who scored her second goal of the game and gave SPS a strong 4-0 lead heading into the final 15 minutes. In the final minutes of the fourth quarter, SPS had three early jump calls on a defensive corner, leaving Captain Thayer Demers and Freshman goalie, Julia Alessandro, alone in the circle. Demers thwarted the offensive momentum until her teammates recovered, but the ball found a Big Red foot, giving the Cougars a second chance with a 7 on 1. This final corner proved successful for Austin Prep, after a healthy scrum, ending the game with a final score of 4-1. We saw some great play from Captains Addie Hayne, Demers, and Chelsea Bell, as well as newcomers Malin Wilde, Katie Kim, Charlotte Cohen, and Abby Hafer. The Big Red are eager to get back on Bogle-Lechner turf to prep for our next game on the road at Groton on Saturday.