Game Recap: Palmerton Field Hockey Beats Northwestern “Baby Tigers”

On September 27th, the girls’ field hockey team traveled to Northwestern to play them for the second time this season. When the two teams previously met, it unfortunately ended in a 3-2 game with Northwestern winning. Going into this game, it was clear the Palmerton Field Hockey team was ready to redeem themselves. And that’s just what they did.

The Lady Bombers started out the match very strong, with number 7 Celeste Hoffmann scoring within the first 12 minutes of the game off a rebound in the circle, leaving 3 minutes and 21 seconds left in the first quarter. This clearly frazzled Northwestern. The first quarter ended shortly after, with the Lady Bombers ahead by 1.

At the beginning of the second quarter, Northwestern attempted to make a shot but was stopped as the ball rolled out of play off a Tiger stick. The quarter concluded with a penalty corner finished with a goal by Sydney Frantz, keeping the Lady Bombers in the lead by two goals. This was an excellent way to finish the first half of the game.

The start of the third quarter brought excitement to Palmerton fans as Sydney Frantz sank another shot in the goal cage, but referees saw a stick violation right before the shot went off. Although that was a slight letdown, that did not stop the Lady Bombers from playing excellent field hockey. Northwestern Lehigh gave the Lady Bombers lots of open opportunities on the field, and that was clear from their level of play. The Lady Tigers could not capitalize on the few opportunities given to them throughout the game.

Although Northwestern was able to get a few penalty corners in the fourth quarter, Palmerton’s defense pulled through. Although Palmerton’s defense and offense were on point all night, the defense really shined during Northwestern’s few penalty corners. Palmerton’s excellent defensive skills clearly frustrated Northwestern Lehigh, as they knew they were running out of time to tie up the game. Northwestern’s attempts to transfer the ball backwards to their own defense were a clear waste of time, and soon enough, the game ended with a 2-0 Lady Bombers victory. Overall, the Lady Bombers had more than 12 penalty corners, while Northwestern had only 6.