Boothbay will see a familiar opponent in the 2018 Class C North field hockey quarterfinals. The No. 8 Seahawks finished 5-9 and will play the region’s top team, Winthrop (13-1), which included two wins over Boothbay. The underdog Seahawks had their hands full both times this season against the Ramblers. Winthrop scored a 9-1 win on Sept. 7 and a 6-0 shutout Oct. 6.

But the second time, Boothbay was shorthanded. The Seahawks played a man down entire the game. And at the half, Winthrop only managed two goals. For Boothbay, the season has been one for a young and inexperienced roster to grow. Boothbay has only three seniors returning from last year’s team which was the best in school history. In 2017, Seahawk field hockey had nine seniors and advanced to the regional semifinals.

During the season, a number of Seahawks have shown great improvement by developing better skills throughout the season. That improvement was displayed during the Seahawks’ loss to Winthrop, which has a highly skilled and experienced squad with 10 seniors. Even under the best of circumstances, Winthrop is a tough opponent for anyone in the Mountain Valley Conference, but considering Boothbay played the entire game a man down against a team which beat them 9-1 earlier this season, the 6-0 loss showed how far the young Seahawks have come.

“Our team has grown in confidence throughout the season,” said Boothbay coach Donna Jordan. “Just  look at today (Oct. 6). I thought we played well against a very good team. We ask them to go out there and do their best and that’s exactly what happened today.”

For senior captains Riley Sullivan and Lexi Lane, the team’s improvement has to do with each member’s efforts to become a better player.  “I think we’re all just playing better than earlier in the season,” Lane said. “It’s not just one thing. Players are doing a better job moving the ball down the field with their individual stickhandling and driving the ball down field.”

Sullivan added better team play has come with improved on field communication. “I see our team doing a better job with our spacing. When an attacker moves up field, a midfielder fills the  space,” she said.

But Coach Jordan sees team communication as an area for vast improvement for her squad. “It’s better, but they are a young squad and there is still a way to go in that area,” she said. On offense, Boothbay has scored 41 goals this season with Chloe Arsenault being the team’s top scorer. “She is fundamentally sound and has worked hard improving her skills in attacking the goal from different areas,” Jordan said.

On defense, in the Seahawks’ five wins, the team has allowed only eight goals. Inside the circle sophomore Kylie Brown has played a key role in defense. “She’s done a great job in picking up the ball and moving it outside the circle. She’s saved a lot of goals for us this year,” Jordan said.

On Wednesday, Boothbay travels to Lewiston High School to play No. 1 Winthrop in the Class C North quarterfinal match.