By Christopher Tremblay,

Staff Sports Writer

Last fall, high schools around the Commonwealth were able to get back onto the fields to participate in their particular sport. While it was great to get back to playing, it was not a season that teams were used to. 

The Ashland field hockey team played a modified 9-game season in a pod against a handful of the teams — unlike what they were used to when playing the entire Tri Valley League. The Clockers completed the 9-game season with a 3-5-1 record.

“We have lost a couple of good seniors from last year’s team, but we have a lot of strong forwards coming back,” Ashland Head Coach Molly Foley said. “I am really excited about this year and looking forward to seeing what these girls can do with a full season as well as all playing together again on the field.”

In addition to the shortened season, the teams played 7-on-7, leaving a lot of the girls on the sidelines instead of playing on the field. Coach Foley had to do some quick thinking and figure out how she was going to field her team each game.

“It was a total balancing act. We had a couple of different formations; sometimes we’d go with one forward, other times two,” she said. “Things all depended on what was going on at the time and how the opposition was playing their defense.”

Although Foley lost some talented seniors from last year’s squad, she had her top scorers returning this fall. Leading the charge on the offensive end of the field will once again be juniors Natalia Arjona (4 goals and 5 assists) and Melissa Leone (3 goals). Foley is very optimistic about her goal scorers and is excited to see what they can actually do playing with a full team this year.

Looking to guide the team to a positive season will be senior tri-captains Olivia Gleason, Lily Ryan, and Kate Campion. Gleason is a four-year defender for the Clockers and according to her coach, is one of the best athletes on the field. She is definitely the strongest defender. 

Campion, who was playing in her very first season on the varsity team last fall, will patrol the midfield for Ashland this year. The senior is not only a strong and speedy individual, but one that plays the game aggressively in the best way.

“Kate will use her speed to her advantage, but she will also fight to the very end while pushing herself and giving everything that she has,” Foley said. “Playing in her second season on the varsity team, I am excited to see what she is able to do this year.”

Two other individuals who the Ashland coach will be relying on this fall will be junior defenders Jordon Sherman and Sydney Whitkens. Last year as a sophomore, Sherman missed a couple of games down the stretch due to injury but seems to be back at full strength and ready to go. The junior will see the majority of her time as a defender, but will also play the midfield position as well, depending on what the Clockers need at any specific time during the game. 

After spending the last three seasons as the Junior Varsity starting goalie, senior Kayleigh Masiello will step in to replace Madigan Flynn, who graduated last year. Masiello has impressed the Clocker coach with her work ethic and is ready to accept the challenge of being a varsity goalie.

“Kayleigh has been working hard so far this season to get ready for her varsity debut. She has really stepped up so far and is definitely motivated to be successful this upcoming year,” Foley said. “She posted a shutout in our first scrimmage against Ursuline Academy, and we are super excited to see her continue to succeed and improve throughout the season.”

Foley is entering her fifth year as the Clockers head Coach and feels the Ashland field hockey team has definitely made strides.

“That first year we finished 2-16 with a rather weak program,” the Clocker Coach said. “We only had a total of 24 girls that year; this year we have 42.  Our defense is very strong, and I am excited about the year and what we can do when playing a whole season with our full team.”

As the season progresses, Foley knows that both Westwood and Dover-Sherborn will be the top teams in the Tri-Valley League, with their rival Hopkinton being another team she looks forward to playing.

“Westwood and D-S are always strong and never an easy game,” she said. “Hopkinton has historically become our rival and last year we split the two games with them. Our games with Hopkinton are always fun but also very competitive.”

In the past Ashland has typically found themselves near the bottom of the league, but since Foley has taken over the program, the team has started to ascend the ladder of the TVL, and the Coach firmly believes they are making progress.

“We have the talent and the hustle to win,” Foley said. “We’re moving up and look to be near the middle of the pack this year while making a name for ourselves in the Tri-Valley League.”

Getting to play a full scheduled season, along with the appropriate number of athletes on the field at the same time, Ashland looks primed to make a move and show the rest of the TVL that they not only belong, but are a team to be reckoned with.