Tabb races past New Kent in field hockey

Lady Trojan Dominique Palero tries to deflect a shot by Tabb's Courtney Fiest while Chandler Dagenhart and goalie Kindred Gray rush to help, but to no avail. It was that kind of night for New Kent's defense.

Alan Chamberlain photo

Speed kills, they say. That axiom applies not just to the highway but also any opponent facing Tabb’s field hockey team.

Blazing speed coupled with superior stick work enabled the Tigers to overwhelm New Kent’s host Lady Trojans to the tune of 8-0. The visitors scored less than a minute into Thursday night’s contest and held a 3-0 advantage less than five minutes in following scores off a pair of penalty corner situations.

“We weren’t ready for their speed,” confessed Lady Trojan coach Matt Duckworth, who called time out after the third goal in an effort to settle his team.

“I got on them about every little battle,” the coach said.

New Kent returned to the field displaying more energy and intensity, but the Tigers added a pair of goals before the break to grab a 5-0 halftime lead. In the first half alone, the Tigers had 16 penalty corners.

“We won a few individual battles and put passes together better than in the York game,” Duckworth said, looking back on a 6-0 loss two nights earlier to the Falcons.

“We competed better than in the York game, but Tabb put everything together,” he said. “They were faster and more aggressive than York.”

As in the York contest, New Kent did not get off a shot against the Tigers. The hosts’ one and only corner came with just under a minute left in the game.

“We got that one penalty corner at the end and didn’t do much with it,” Duckworth said after his team fell to 1-3. “It would have been nice to have had an opportunity [to score].”