When the Parkland High School and Emmaus High School field hockey teams got together for the only meeting during the 2021 regular season, the Trojans did not put up much of a fight in losing 5-0 back on October 14.

But the second time around, when the game was bigger, Parkland competed for the entire game and was there right until the end. The Green Hornets, however, were able to win the game 2-0 last Tuesday night at Whitehall High School in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference semifinal.

“We can take a lot out of the game,” said head coach Julie Sikorsky. “We know that we cannot win a game with a zero next to our name. We have to find the back of the cage. We dominated a large portion of the first half and had several corner opportunities, but we could not finish. We have to get their defense to move and get some shots off the ground. They are not unbeatable, but we have to play a full 60 minutes and find the back of the cage.”

After allowing five goals in the last meeting, the Parkland defense stepped up and kept their team in the game and within striking distance. Sikorsky had the right game plan for her defense.

“We did not give up as many defensive corners as we did previous when we played Emmaus,” Sikorsky said. “We kept our feet moving in the circle and were dedicated to going to the ball or committing a foul outside of our circle and even outside of our 25-yard line. Everyone played defense. My forward line was back in the 25 to help defense.”

Even following another loss to their rival, Sikorsky told her team that there is still a lot more to play for and that they might be seeing the Green Hornets again for a third time when districts opens up.

“I explained to them that they continue to chip away at the loss deficit,” said Sikorsky. “The next time we see Emmaus we have to be dedicated and determined to scoring goals and playing an entire game. If we can hang with a team like Emmaus for an entire game, then there is no reason we cannot beat any opponent we see in Districts.”

The District 11 playoff begin on Thursday afternoon when the three seed, Parkland, hosts the six seed, Liberty, at Parkland High School.

“We were pleased to see we earned the third seed in the bracket,” Sikorsky said. “My girls are hoping to get to that district championship against Emmaus. They want the big game. They are also hoping for that opportunity to play in the first round of states. Two 3A teams go to states, so making it to that district final with Emmaus will not only be an excellent game, but also will give us that opportunity whether we come out one or two.”