For the second time this week, the Porkers hosted a night game on Turco Field. Coming off their strong 3-0 victory over perennial Central Mass power Notre Dame Academy of Worcester on Sunday, Walpole had high hopes for their Tuesday night contest versus the Framingham Flyers. Despite the fact that Framingham’s record is a shade under five hundred, the Porkers knew that they had to come out strong in order to win; and they did just that.
Within the first five minutes of the game the Porkers had drawn eight penalty corners. While they were unable to convert any of the early corners into goals the momentum of the game clearly favored Walpole. Watching the offense from the other end of the field, senior captain Katie Kelley said, “It’s hard watching the team trying so hard to put that first goal in, but once we do they keep on rolling.” That is exactly what happened in this game, and Kelly’s words were an apt summary.
With 9:43 left in the first half, senior Cailey Griffin tipped in a shot from sophomore Brooke Matherson, also assisted by senior captain Meghan Murphy. Just over a minute later Griffin tipped another ball into the cage off a shot from Murphy, also assisted by Matherson.
The Porkers ended the first half up 2-0. But the scoring did not stop there. Walpole enjoyed a quick start to the second half with a goal from Murphy. Walpole kept the pressure on Framingham’s defense, with the ball rarely entering the Porkers’ defensive circle. Griffin had her third goal of the game, making it her first career hat trick.
Murphy said, “[the team] played really well last night, but our biggest problem is scoring early. In tournament, it’s going to be crucial to finish scoring on fewer opportunities. We can’t wait over ten minutes into the game to finally score against a beatable team, so that’s definitely something that takes practice, as well as focus, to improve.”
Also critical of the delayed scoring, Coach Marianne Murphy said, “I thought overall the team played well. We got off to a slow start but once everyone settled in we executed quite well. We are passing well and opening up the field which allows for quick transition and movement of the ball.”
The Porkers, with a record of 14-0-0 has four regular season games remaining. While Coach Murphy stresses that her team must take the schedule one game at a time, she knows the October 24 game against undefeated Weston will be their biggest test of their remaining regular season games.
