Although Aggies scored first, they were unable to equalize after Delaware netted two goals
By COLINA HARVEY — sports@theaggie.org
On Nov. 8, the UC Davis Field Hockey team’s season wrapped up with the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Championship match against the University of Delaware. The game was the first-ever MPSF Championship and was hosted by the Aggies. Although UC Davis fought hard until the end, they fell to Delaware with an end score of 2-1.
The Aggies struggled throughout the season, finishing with an overall record of 6-10. Although the team faced challenges, they still found moments to celebrate.
“Our culture was really good this year, just celebrating the small wins. Like, whenever a goal was scored, everyone on the field or the bench is just cheering like crazy,” Karly Redman, a fourth-year environmental policy, analysis and planning major and forward, said.
Redman pointed to the Aggies’ win against Ball State University on Sept. 5 as a special moment for the team. Going into the fourth quarter, the Aggies trailed 1-3. Despite Ball State scoring again in the fourth quarter, the Aggies were able to stay in the game with three of their own goals, tying the game.
“We took them into overtime, and then we ended up winning. It was just really hype and fun,” Redman said.
After the regular season wrapped up, the Aggies had a chance to win the inaugural MPSF championship. Although the Aggies came out strong, Delaware responded quickly to their early goal.
“We ended up scoring first off a deflection goal. That just brought really good energy, and we were winning, but then Delaware ended up scoring two minutes or so after,” Redman said. “They just quickly caught us on our back foot.”
Throughout the match, the Aggies outshot Delaware and remained competitive, but ultimately suffered a loss. The team especially struggled with converting plays and shots into goals.
“We just tried to attack as much as we could, but just came up short,” Redman said. “[We] couldn’t tie it, but […] I just feel like we gave it as much as we could. […] A lot that we focused on leading up to the game, in practice, was converting on our short corners — we just weren’t converting on them. It’s pretty much just a straight shot on goal, and just our set plays weren’t working. I think if we capitalized on those, we could have gotten more goals.”
Although the Aggies were not able to secure the MPSF championship, many players were given MPSF honors to commemorate their work. Redman won the MPSF Offensive Player of the Year award, and Addy Collingwood, a first-year business major and goalkeeper, won Freshman of the Year. In addition to Redman, several other players were selected to the MPSF All-Conference Team; Hayden Ma, a fourth-year cognitive science major and defender; Beth Munro-Morris, a fourth-year design major and midfielder; Ella Franken, a third-year international relations major and midfielder; and Morgan Caldera, a third-year cognitive science major and midfielder.
“It feels really good [to be awarded]. I just think all the work we put in in the off-season just really shows,” Redman said.
As the field hockey season has officially come to an end, the UC Davis athletes will now focus on off-season training and improving their gameplay. Overall, the team had a mixed season; they hope to focus on refining their team strategies and improving their results for the next season, according to Redman.
“I think [we need to work on] solidifying our style of play,” Redman said. “I think throughout the year, we’d kind of dip at times with the connecting passes, so I think if we just really hone in on our key concepts and just strengthen those, then I think we’ll be pretty solid.”
Written by: Colina Harvey — sports@theaggie.org
