Warriors play Wilmington to 1-1 draw

By DAN MARGARITA

WAKEFIELD — What looked like a blowout in the making turned into a 1-1 tie as the Wakefield Memorial High field hockey team fended off Wilmington last night at Beasley Field.

Wakefield is now 1-4-1 in the Middlesex League Freedom division. The Warriors also put an end to a four-game losing streak.

For the first 10 minutes of the game the ball was almost exclusively in the Wakefield end, as Wakefield coach Cara Luca admitted.

“Yes, it was. I was pretty scared. I’m not going to lie to you. We’ve had a rough couple of games and we needed something to change today. Wilmington came out stronger and then as the game went on, we started to click.”

Indeed, it didn’t take long for Wilmington to score when Melissa McNamara scored to give Wilmington a 1-0 lead.

Bethany Kane and Melissa McNamara led much of the assault on Wakefield goalie Miriam Wood, who stopped a barrage of shots.

“She’s phenomenal. She comes up with these great saves and she’s been holding the team together. So she had another great game today,” praised Luca.

It looked like Wakefield might have something going when Jill Cataldo drove down the left sideline but her drive was broken up by the Wildcats defense.

The second half started much the same way with Wilmington dominating but some fine defense by Hayley Kaddaras and company kept Wilmington at bay.

“My defense is strong. Mackenzie Foley has a great drive and we needed her drive today. However our forward line wasn’t cutting right. So, at halftime I had to tell them what to do. Hayley (Kaddaras), Michelle (DeJoie) and Meaghan Kerrigan all have great sticks. They know when to stop the ball and when to bring it out,” said Luca.

Wakefield didn’t quit, though and its effort paid off when Cataldo scored with an assist from Julianne Bourque to tie the game at 1-1, where it would stand.

“So, I’m pretty happy today. For the most part, I’m pretty happy,” Luca said.

The Warriors will seek to get on the winning track when it faces rival Melrose on Saturday afternoon at 12:45 p.m. at Beasley Field.

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At Beasley Field

Wilmington………..1 0 — 1

WAKEFIELD……..  0 1 — 1

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First Half — Wil, McNamara (un.) 28:55.

Second Half — Wak, Cataldo (Bourque) 4:24.

Saves — Wak, Wood (14 saves). Wil, Cuazzo (0).