Sometimes, the more things change, the more they stay the same. That certainly seems to be the case for the Mamaroneck field hockey team, as the Tigers—taking the field with a new head coach for the first time in over two decades—have shown that they still appear to be one of the premier programs in all of Section I.
On Monday, Sept. 5, the Tigers earned a decisive 3-0 win over a good Rye team to improve to 2-0 on the young season. First year head coach Tricia Miller—who spent the last 23 years as an assistant to former coach John Savage, who retired in May—said that was pleased with her team’s performance against the Garnets, even if it did take the Tigers a little time to get rolling on Monday morning.
The Tigers generated several scoring chances—peppering Rye goalie Chloe Holden with 23 shots on the day—but couldn’t break through until late in the first half when Kate Orchanian converted on a penalty corner chance.
“Rye’s a very good team, they’re coached well, so we had to try a couple of different corners we had in our pocket,” said Miller. “Eventually they worked.”
Mamaroneck would increase their lead in the second half on goals from Olivia Tennant—who assisted on the Tigers’ first score—and Carlie Spano to come away with a 3-0 victory. Mamaroneck goalie Danielle Maresca made six stops to post the shutout, her second on the year thus far.
The Tigers have outscored opponents 6-0 in their first two games, which should be an eye opener for other teams in Section I given Mamaroneck’s youth. Miller said that she opted to take a larger roster than has been the norm at Mamaroneck, populating it with underclassmen players she expects to make an impact on the varsity level.
“In past years, John [Savage] usually preferred to keep the team with juniors and seniors, but I think this is probably the youngest team we’ve had here.”
Miller added that although she is putting her own stamp on the program this year, she owes much to her longtime colleague.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Coach Savage and I think lot of his traditions are continuing here,” she said. “But we did get younger and I’m trying to give the girls a little more flexibility on the field to make their own decisions.”
The Tigers will be back in action on Monday, Sept. 12, when they travel to Suffern to take on the Mounties.
