Contending for the FAA and NEPSAC tournament titles have been part of the impressive history of the Greenwich Academy varsity field hockey team for more than three decades and judging by the early results of the Gators’ 2025 season, they should once again, be among the premier programs in the NEPSAC.

Like all high school teams, the faces change each year on GA’s field hockey team, yet the outstanding results have practically, remained the same. After playing four of its NEPSAC opponents, Greenwich Academy is a perfect 4-0 to start the season and is shaping closer to top form with each game.

Greenwich Academy’s latest win occurred when FAA foe Hopkins School visited GA’s new artificial turf field hockey field on Sept. 24. Scoring two goals apiece in the first and second quarters, Greenwich Academy earned a convincing 6-0 victory over visiting Hopkins and improved its mark in the FAA to 3-0

“I’m really excited about our team,” we’re really close knit,” GA senior defender/captain Mallory Walker said following the Gators’ win against Hopkins. “We had a little team bonding trip at the end of the summer during preseason and I feel like we’re really close and emphasizing being a team. Then, all the field hockey stuff will come with that.”

The 2024 season was another highly successful campaign for the Gators. They reached the FAA Tournament final, where they were edged by neighborhood rival Sacred Heart Greenwich, 1-0. Greenwich Academy and Sacred Heart met again in the NEPSAC Tournament quarterfinals and this time it was GA that won, pulling out a 1-0 double overtime victory to advance to the NEPSAC semifinals. Coached by Jamie Brower, GA finished its 2024 season with a record of 16-3-2.

Captains Walker and senior midfielder Georgia Schmitz are among a group of athletes back on the field from last season’s successful squad, which includes numerous first-season varsity athletes.

“We lost the majority of our backline from last season, but I’m proud of how everyone has stepped up,” Walker said. “We definitely have been working a lot in practice on defending and talking too.”

Walker’s older sister, Maya, captained GA’s varsity field hockey team as well. Maya was a 2020 Greenwich Academy graduate.

“I watched my sister when she was a GA captain and it’s kind of a full-circle moment,” Walker noted. “I’m really excited to be a captain and I want everyone to have the good experience that I’ve had at GAVFH too.”

Effectively and efficiently passing the ball up the field through each line, the Gators held a significant possession advantage on their way to defeating Hopkins School.

“We’re definitely working on two-touch passing now and just trying to get connecting passes with one another,” said Schmitz, a midfielder. “I think the off-field bonding is translating onto the field. Our passing is definitely getting a lot better.”

Brower left the Hopkins triumph pleased with what she saw from her squad and their potential moving forward.

“We played well, we moved a lot of people all over the field, so the more of them that understand more of the positions, the better we’ll be as a whole.”

Sophomore forward/midfielder Elizabeth Winston opened the scoring for GA against Hopkins. Winston scored off a scramble in front of the cage with 13:30 remaining in the first quarter, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead. Sophomore forward Winnie Newman assisted on Winston’s tally.

Maddie Lane, a sophomore midfielder, extended Greenwich Academy’s lead to 2-0. She tipped in a shot off a penalty corner, giving GA a two-goal edge at the 11:15 mark of the opening quarter.

Fifty-nine seconds into the second quarter, the home team struck again. Junior forward Emily Rizzi scored off a penalty corner, putting GA in front, 3-0. The assist went to sophomore midfielder/forward Penny Perkins. Rizzi’s second goal of the matchup came with 9:16 left in the second quarter.

Her second tally was the result of a penalty corner, which Greenwich Academy executed well throughout. In the third quarter, Winston notched another goal, with assists going to senior forward/midfielder Quinn Lahey and Newman.

Freshman forward/midfielder Annie Hanson capped the Gators’ scoring, using a reverse chip to tally with 12:20 to go in the fourth quarter. Lahey assisted on Hanson’s goal, which made it 6-0 in favor of the Gators.

With a record of 3-0 in the FAA, Greenwich Academy has also beaten league opponents Greenwich Country Day School and King School. They topped NEPSAC foe Choate School as well. GA also recently competed in the Max Preps Tournament, where they played St. John’s from Texas and Warwick from Pennsylvania.

“It was a good learning experience to play against teams we wouldn’t normally play against,” Walker noted.

Walker, Schmitz, senior Mia Jones and freshman Barrett Hanson are among some of the athletes solidifying GA’s defense. Senior Ella Loehnis started in goal for the victors against Hopkins, earning the win.

“Hopkins didn’t let down the whole time, they played a hard game, a strong game,” Brower noted. “They were getting inside our 25 the last few minutes of the game, so, all-in-all, it was a pretty good game for us.”

Lahey, Rizzi, junior forward/midfielder Melanie Saunders, sophomore midfielder/forward Cordelia Blanc and Annie Hanson are among the athletes that have paced GA offensively so far this season.

“We have a nice, deep bench of forwards,” Brower said. “As a whole, we are still moving people around and figuring out what the best version is, which is a wonderful luxury to have that you have players that you can do that with.”

GA’s coach appreciates the effort and dedication her senior captains have displayed.

“We’re really proud of them, they are both four-year members of the team,” Brower said the captains. “They’re both doing such a great job.”

Greenwich Academy is in action today (Sept. 27) against NEPSAC rival Hotchkiss School on the road. The game is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. GA hosts Taft School at 5 p.m. on Sept. 29 and is home again against FAA foe St. Luke’s on Sept. 30.

“One of our goals is being a really close-knit team and making sure we’re getting that much better with each game,” Walker said.

Said Schmitz: “We’re working on getting a little bit better each game. We have a lot of variation on the field, which is good. Different people are playing different positions and I think we’re getting better. I’m really excited about being a captain. I’ve had such great leaders in the past, so I’m really excited. We have a lot of new players, but they are fast learners and I’m excited for the rest of the season.”

Brower is impressed with how the newcomers have adjusted to competing at the varsity level and with the overall depth of the team.

“The best thing I love is being able to move people around and having them play different positions,” she said. “Everyone has been game for it, they have been asking questions and learning. I feel like we have a lot of inexperienced varsity players on the field and the longer they play and jell it will pay off.”

“We’re trying to have our learning curve skyrocket, stay steady and get better each day,” she continued. “If we do that, then I think we’ll do really well.”

Greenwich Academy’s varsity field hockey team gathers during timeouts of their 6-0 home win over Hopkins School.