Tigers Earn First Wins of the Fall Season - Weekly Highlights 9/8 – 9/13

TIGERS ROLL IN FIRST WINS OF THE FALL SEASON

Girls Soccer (1-2) 

The Varsity Girls Soccer Team came out with a decisive 6-1 victory over J.R. Masterman in their home season opener. The Masterman frontline found quick success and scored on the Tigers in the fourth minute of action. The early goal lit a fire under the Tigers and they proceeded to score six unanswered goals to solidify their first win of the season. Head Coach Monolo Sanchez ’10 noted, “We displayed good character and mental toughness after conceding an early goal. We created opportunities and were relentless in searching for the next goal.” Junior captain Mia Rutledge ’25 sparked the Tigers' comeback with an unassisted goal in the 7th minute. This busted the game wide open for the players in orange, who began a deluge of offensive production. Anchored defensively by goalie Abby Mahler ’26, and left back Olivia Lutey ’26 the Tigers fended off Masterman’s quest to add to their goal total, and built momentum out of the backfield. Sophomore Emmie Day ’26 (pictured) proved to be an integral part of the team’s connection, “her link-up play to connect the ball from the midfielders into the attacking third was brilliant, as was her final product near the goal,” added Sanchez ’10. Day ’26 finished the game with one goal and two assists. 

Stat Leaders: 

• Nati Whitman ’28 (2 goals) 
• Mia Rutledge ’25 (2 goals) 
• Emmie Day ’26 (1 goal, 2 assists) 
• Sarah Goldberg ’26 (1 goal, 1 assist) 
• Olivia Vlad ’27 (1 assist)
• Hilal Vandenberg ’25 (1 assist)
• Abby Mahler ’26 (4 saves from 5 shots on target)

Field Hockey (1-1) 

The Varsity Field Hockey team returned to their grassy roots in a head-to-head battle against Archbishop Ryan. The Tigers Field Hockey line-up has only gotten stronger since last fall, having graduated no seniors and adding a competitive freshman class. The freshman made their presence immediately apparent in their Varsity debut. Lexi Ablin ’27 (pictured with teammate and classmate Isla Smoger ’27) notched two goals, Rachel Cornejo ’27 tallied one, and junior Rachel Jiang ’25 found the back of the net and closed the door on Archbishop Ryan. The momentum started with strong efforts by the defensive line and senior goalkeeper Asha Wilson ’24, who defended Archbishop Ryan’s free hits and successfully regained possession for the Tigers. Head Coach Rachel Steinman was happy with the opening win and their ability to execute the game plan but recognized this was only step one of a long road ahead. “This was a perfect way to start the regular season and if we keep playing with confidence and bring this same level of competitiveness, we will continue to be successful come league play,” added Steinman. 

Tigers Field Hockey will begin their hunt for in-league success against Friends’ Central on September 21st. 

Cross Country 

Under the newly returned leadership of Head Coach Rob Hewitt, Boys and Girls Cross Country found early race success at the Cherokee Challenge this weekend. The boys team placed third out of 100+ teams from the tri-state area. The boys side was led by three top-ten finishers, Jasper Mosely ’24 (5th), Mason Kresloff ’25 (6th), and Charlie Berk ’27 (9th) in the senior, junior, and freshman divisions respectively. Moseley ’24 (pictured) and Kresloff ’25 each set personal records for the course, improving by a total of two and a half minutes from the previous season. Declan Head ’27, Liam Riley ’26, and Finn Busser ’26 all finished in the top thirty with Busser ’26 and Riley ’26 and set PRs for the course. The girls team also saw marked improvement with 75% of their runners setting Cherokee Challenge PRs. Jane Keenan ’25 led the pack and finished 16th overall in the Girls Junior Division. A special shoutout to Frances Ruth Buurma ’28 who placed fourth overall in the Girls Middle School Division. For the complete team results, click here. Tigers Cross Country will look to maintain their pace at the George School Dual Meet next Tuesday, September 19.