After a grueling double overtime, the field hockey team fell to Oakton due to penalty shots on September 19.

“Our biggest strength tonight was the way the team played together and raised the level of quickness and intensity to match what Oakton brought to the field,” Head coach Cindy Hook said. “The Team refused to give up.”

The Atoms’ persistence and drive enabled them to score in the first six minutes of the second half. The goal, scored by Thia Carayiannis, tied the game 1-1.

“When Thia scored I was exhilarated,” Senior Captain Lizzie Manthos said. “It put us back in the game and gave us the drive to play even harder and try to win.”

The team will work hard to improve for their next game against Lake Braddock. “We need to improve our passing angles,” Hook said. “We also need to work on switching the field to spread the other team apart.”

“Our weakness as a team is our lack of communication and other minor details such as finishing our shots,” McCann said. “We will overcome them by talking more and hustling in the circle.”

The team’s next game will be their first District game. “I feel pretty good about tonight because we have been playing really well and each game we get better.” senior captain Katie McCann said. “we have a good attitude about everything so it will just be fun tonight.”

“The team has truly taken to heart its not who you play it’s how you play.” Hook said. “I know that they are going to be strong and come out and play their best.”