THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, November 10, 2023 Page 17 Malden High Field Hockey blanks Milford, 4-0, in MIAA Division 2 State Tournament Ford scores two goals; Rivadeneira tosses shutout in goal for Tornados By Nathan Dean Malden High Blue and Gold The Malden High School Golden Tornado Field Hockey team advanced to the preliminary round of the Division 2 State Tournament in a dominant 4-0 victory against the Milford Hawks. The 2023 GBL Champs went into the match as the 33rdranked seed competing against the 2-14-2 Milford team ranked as the 32nd seed with both teams vying for a chance in the Round of 32 against the firstranked team in Reading Memorial the following Saturday. Malden would go on to lose the game to Reading Memorial 8-0. On the cold day of November 3, the Golden Tornados braved the hour-long bus ride to Milford and began to warm up. As the game started, Malden quickly pulled away with an early goal from freshman Anthony Ford off of a corner only fi ve minutes into the game. Malden would continue the early pressure with Ford scoring another goal not too long after. With the end of the fi rst quarLooking for some new players for next season Moving into next year, the Malden High School Field Hockey won its fi rst MIAA State Tournament game in over a decade, 4-0, over Milford in Division 2. (Courtesy/Nathan Dean/MHS Blue and Gold) ter, though, Milford turned the tide and put on a strong second quarter, but good defense from the Malden side keeps the score 2-0 in Malden’s favor. The third quarter was more even, but only Malden was able to capitalize with a third goal from junior Kevin Chen. A fourth goal from Malden late in the last quarter from junior Kyle Huang would seal the deal for Malden. “I feel on top of the world,” said Captain Daniel O’Toole, after the win. Ford echoed O’Toole’s emotion, saying he “feels great.” Coach Tiffany Cane emphasized that both coaches were really proud of the team. “They’ve really come together,” Cane added. “This game was a phenomenal game; they played their heart out. This is the furthest that Malden Field Hockey has gone since we’ve been coaching.” Both Coach Cane and Coach Samantha Souza began coaching in 2018. This is the second time under their leadership that the team has made the State Tournament and the third time that the team has been GBL champions. “We had some really good practices leading up to this game,” Coach Souza mentioned, “We played like we practiced, and that really made us successful today.” “Everybody was in control; we were playing great defense and had some great shots on corners and penalties,” O’Toole added. “Our communication was pretty good,” Captain Pam Pam San continued. “We really pulled through. It was one of our best games yet,” senior Sandra Tang said. **** team is looking to recruit more athletes as many members will be graduating. For those interested in joining, information sessions will be held in the spring, and captains’ practices will be held in the summer. Coach Cane describes the team as “very family-based,” adding that “everyone is really great friends.” More information can be found on the team’s Instagram page @maldenfi eldhockey. In addition to these recruiting strategies, Coach Souza and Coach Cane are also looking to develop a middle school fi eld hockey program. “There’s no experience before they play in high school. Literally, everyone is picking up a stick for the fi rst time,” Souza explained. Lastly, the coaches wanted to congratulate the team’s seniors: Yara Escobar, Daniel O’Toole, Zachary Nedell, Pam Pam San, Lilly Desantis and Sandra Tang. “They’re irreplaceable,” Coach Cane said. “I’m so happy for them.” Malden High Varsity Golf Team wins GBL title for first time in 42 years Golden Tornadoes co-op with Revere is a success in fi rst season By Th omas Tierney Malden High Blue and Gold T hroughout the season, Malden High’s golf team faced many adversities with either personal struggles or struggles as a team. But through this struggle, they came out on top for the fi rst time in over four decades. A big part of the team’s success came straight from practices. Junior Dante Federico noticed throughout the season just how important it was. “This year we had to be competitive amongst each other in practice, and at the highest level; in doing so we kept our team hungry for the knowledge of the game and the chance to end our drought in the GBL,” Federico said. The team, instead of practicing single skills in practices, decided to face each other, bringing consistent competition and the need to be consistent as players. The Malden High School Golf Team is the Greater Boston League Champion for the fi rst time in 42 years. The Malden players are Ryan Coggswelll, Tommy Cronin, Dante Federico, Saul Kurckenberg, Chris MacDonald Josh Mini and Bo Stead. (Courtesy photo) Despite all of the positives, the team still faced struggles. Junior Chris MacDonald talked about their struggles as a team but also his personal struggles during the season. MacDonald brought up how they struggled to close matches and struggled to stay consistent through those matches, but also how when they played harder competition and that they showed heart in those games staying so close. That heart came and swooped into the team’s fi nal match of the season. In a match against Lynn Classical to win the GBL title, the team didn’t know just what the outcome of their season would be until the fi nal hole. MacDonald expressed his feelings about how he and the team felt in that moment, saying, “It was one of the greatest feelings ever.” It wasn’t just beating Lynn Classical – it was also putting a better record out than any other team in the league, and it was very close. Malden won with an outstanding record of 8-1-1 while second-place team Lynn English fi nished with another impressive record of 8-2. But, in the end, it was Malden’s team who showed up to take the title home. With this being the fi rst GBL title for the Golf team in years, knowing that this team sent the seniors off with a bang felt great for the seniors. Senior captain Saul Kruckenberg talked about this season and shared his opinion on it: “I am so glad that this is how we were able to close out my last year in this program. With the amazing family we built as a team, this is such a great way to get sent off .” But it was also a great feeling for the underclassmen. MacDonald was just as proud of his team for sending their seniors off as well as they did. “Knowing that we sent the seniors off with one of the biggest and best accomplishments we could’ve had for the season is a great feeling simply because we all know they will never forget this season because of how it ended on such a high note,” MacDonald said. The heart, time and chemistry this team put on display this season – by every individual player – really puts into perspective just how much this team deserved it.
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