By: Margo Rawlings

Sports Editor

Following a successful season, finishing 1st in the De Anza League and ranking 5th in the United States in Oct. 2022, the Los Gatos Field Hockey (LGFH) team is looking to extend their Central Coast Section (CCS) championship wins to 18 this fall. 

With a strong start to the season, Varsity Field Hockey beat Hollister 3-0 and Stevenson High School 7-0 earlier this month. Senior Macy Dennon explained, “After coming home from our first games, I realized how fun this season was going to be and how amazing our team is. Not only do I love every single person on our team and our bond is so amazing, but our plays are so elevated compared to last year. I’m so excited to see what we’ll do during CCS this year.” The Stevenson game highlighted the team’s ability to work together and use every player on the field. During the fourth quarter LGFH worked together, making smart passes to move the ball around the field while maintaining possession. 

On Sept. 12, the team played their first league game against Archbishop Mitty, the defending CCS champions. Los Gatos controlled the game, beating Mitty 2-0, creating various opportunities for the team to score. When reflecting on the game, senior co-captain Ellie White mentioned, “I think that our team is really strong and we have really good camaraderie. We’ve been playing together for a couple years now, so we know how each other plays and we work really well as a team.” She continued, “After our first games, we’ve started getting our chemistry together and building each other strongly. I think our game against Mitty was our first test of how well we can do together and we showed how good of a team we are.” 

LG quickly adjusted to the difference in fields as the turf is more energy-absorbent. They found success by working together and sending the ball up the sides of the field, before attempting to move towards the cage, and produce a score or short corner. Additionally, junior Clare Torres said “Our game against Mitty was our first league game of the season and they’re one of our biggest competitors, so I was pretty nervous. But since we won, I feel more confident in our team for the rest of the season.” 

The field hockey team will play a total of 14 league games before beginning postseason play to compete for another CCS championship. With ten games to go, Torres added “I’m really excited to see how we do for the remainder of the season. I think our team has a lot of chemistry and we work super well together.” LG will play Mitty again at home on Oct. 5 along with other challenging matches throughout the season. 

LGFH plays Fremont High School at home on Thursday Sept. 28th, so make sure to cheer them on. Varsity plays at 4:00 P.M. and JV will follow. Come support your Wildcats!