Wildcats blank Nighthawks to earn win

The Bethel High field hockey team has struggled to score goals all season, but against Newtown on Tuesday they made the most of its one goal. The Wildcats (3-7-3) got a goal from Lizzie Morton midway through the first half and held onto the 1-0 lead, thanks to Olivia Mullen's 15 saves in goal.

Morton's goal came on a corner after the Nighthawks had kept the Wildcats pinned in their own zone for most of the game up to that point. Jenna Mango earned the assist on the goal.

"Most of our goals this season have been on corners," coach Katie McGowan said.  "Lizzie's one of the seniors, she's also a captain and she's very athletic. Her and Jenna work very well together."

After the goal, the Wildcats settled down and developed some offensive rhythm for the remainder of the half.

While the Wildcats held their own the first half, they merely survived the second half. With just more than 13 minutes left, Newtown amped up the pressure and kept the Wildcats in their own zone for most of the remaining time

With the Nighthawks on the offensive the Wildcats settled into a more defensive game, hoping their first half goal would stand up.

"After we had the one goal, I made sure our backs played more back in the circle," McGowan said. "But it was still important that everyone came back."

The Nighthawks had nine corners in the second half, but were unable to capitalize on the chances due to Mullen who stopped everything fired at her.

"She's very good," McGowan said. "She's one of the captains, she talks to everybody on defense tells them who to mark up. She's been pretty consistent for us all year."

Newtown had one final chance to score thanks to a corner that came with no time left on the clock, but their desperate effort for a tie was ended when the Wildcats cleared the ball from their circle to end the game.

The Wildcats next game is Saturday at Brookfield at 2:00 p.m., and they close out their regular season with a home game against Lauralton Hall at 7:00 p.m. on Monday.