Page 217 - WHS FH 2014

“I think they played more like a team in the second half,” Hynes said of her team. “I think we were much more
aggressive when we had the ball, and then 50/50 balls going to them. And when (Barlow was) taking free hits, I
thought we played much more intelligent reading where they wanted to go. ”The Wilton defense — Rappaport,
Taverna and Jess Hendry, with Caroline Ferro filling in off the bench — did not allow a shot in the second half.

“I think our defense stepped
up tremendously. They were
trying to hit the ball up to their
forward line, just big hits, and
we knew that, so defensively
instead of them letting Barlow
receive and then play defense,
(it was) let’s go get that ball,”
said Hynes. “I think they did
an excellent job stepping up.
Meredith Rappaport did an
amazing job, stepping up,
being aggressive and kind of
taking number 8’s momentum
away from her.”

“They made some really good
adjustments on their defense.
They were cutting off our
passes, reading the passes
much better in the second half,” said Barlow coach Connie Chapin, whose team finished the season at 13-6-1.
Coach Chapin had nothing but praise for her team after the game.

“We’ve come a long way at Joel Barlow, and I think fundamentally we’re very, very sound, and its’ a very
positive bunch of kids,” she said. “I don’t have any negative thoughts whatsoever about the way we played the
game. I think we should have our heads held high. We came a lot farther than people had anticipated, and we
have a wonderful future going forward. We’re graduating seven seniors but only one starter.”

Chapin said it was another steppingstone for a program on the rise. “Our kids are learning how to win and not
be quite so shy about stepping out onto the field against a team like this,” she said. “Our team played well. It
could have easily gone either way.
Their goalie is outstanding. I can’t say
enough about their goalie. Megan
Cunningham is just unbelievable. She
did a really nice job.”

The Warriors now prepare for fourth-
seeded Lauralton Hall (14-3-1), a team
they beat earlier this season 1-0, in
addition to last year’s state
championship game. The date, time and
site of the game is expected to be
announced on Saturday.

“They’re going to be out for blood. We
know that. I’m sure they’re still
probably not over last year’s finals, so
we know this exactly what they wanted.
It’s going to be a hard-fought game,”
said Hynes. “It will be a great game again. We’re excited to play them again,” Godin said.