When Covenant and Albemarle have locked up in field hockey the last three years, it has been an excellent test for both squads, a nip and tuck game with a playoff feel.
That’s led to a mutual respect that’s pretty clear on the field.
“Some of the girls on Albemarle play on my club team and we’ve played with a lot of these girls since we were freshmen,” said Covenant’s Melissa McGlothlin. “It’s really nice to play against them and be a little bit competitive — we’re like you’re good and we’re good so we’re going to try and have great competition.”
Despite both squads working in new faces at key spots this year, Wednesday’s edition of what has become a public-private rivalry of sorts didn’t disappoint. An Ivy Allen strike with 20:35 to play provided the difference in a 1-0 win for the Eagles.
Allen’s strike came from near the top of the circle, a step back that she hit straight into the left corner where she took advantage of the Albemarle keeper shifting to the left. That was enough for the Eagles to hold on, though a few minutes later, McGlothlin, Chloe Mitchell and the rest of the Covenant defense had to withstand a barrage of chances and runs by the Patriots as Albemarle cranked up the intensity down the stretch.
“We didn’t start like I thought we were going to start and it took us until the last 10 minutes of the game before we turned it on,” said Albemarle coach Brittany McElheny. “It was a little bit bittersweet and I wish we would’ve stuck one in there but I was glad to see our potential finally come through.”
The familiarity between the two squads also extended beyond club squads as the Patriots also faced off against Mitchell, a strong backline defender who transferred to Covenant from Albemarle last year.
“It was really great connecting with them again and I know them really well, it was an awesome opportunity,” Mitchell said.
Albemarle had a significant chance late in the first half when a deep run led to a tie up with the Covenant keeper and an Albemarle attacker. The referees waved off the contact and didn’t award the Patriots a stroke. That was one of the few excellent chances that either team enjoyed in a first half dominated by midfield play as both defenses played well and each offense struggled a little to find a rhythm. That comes as no surprise as both are early in a retooling process, with Albemarle returning just three regular starters including Kelsey Meyers and Anna Murray after the graduation of Kat Bianchetto, Morgan Rose and Nyla Lewis as part of a deep senior class.
“We’re only returning four starters so we’re still working on things and finding a groove,” McElheny said. “It’ll get there.”
Meanwhile, Covenant replaces three key seniors from last season’s squad including Lizzy Shim, the UVa freshman who was a critical part of what they do in the midfield and in transition. That’s pushed the Eagles to a more passing-based approach rather than driving and they’re starting to embrace that change in approach.
“We have to work on finishing the ball because without Lizzy there she’s usually the one who gets the ball into the circle and then finishes,” McGlothlin said. “Without Lizzy we have to work as a team to get the ball up the field and finish it.”
The Eagles are still particularly talented in the midfield with Division I pledges in Allen and Megan McGlothlin so as Mitchell pointed out, it’s not as much that they’re weak there, it’s that they just have to figure it out after having a player that solved a ton of problems night in and night out.
“We’re not lacking in the middle, but we have to compensate for such a strong player in the middle,” Mitchell said. “We almost have to work harder moving up the field as one and not just have one player moving the ball up and down the field.”
The victory was Covenant’s Alan Good’s first as a head coach, though he and former head coach Annie Gumbs are still running the show together like they have the past few years during a tremendous stretch of success for the Eagles.
“Honestly it’s a relief — not a huge amount has changed in our program and I very much see us as co-coaches — but at the same time when you have that title beside your name there’s a little bit of extra pressure,” Good said. “Particularly when we have to go play our first game away at a very strong local rival that we know are going to give us a tight game.”
