The varsity field hockey team at Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria made the 2021 season its best since joining the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference in 2011. The Cardinals made their inaugural conference championship appearance, and subsequently joined two other diocesan teams to compete at the statewide Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association quarterfinals earlier this month.
Ireton forged its way to the WCAC finals in a campaign that featured a triple-overtime win over Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, Md., and a narrow victory in the closing seconds of regulation play against St. Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly. The team sustained a top five VISAA ranking all season and finished 11-3 overall and 5-1 in conference play. In the Nov. 6 WCAC finals, the Cardinals fell to Washington-based Saint John’s College High School in overtime, 1-0.
St. Paul VI (7-4; 4-2) and Bishop O’Connell of Arlington (6-6; 1-5) also reached the VISAA state quarterfinals, hosted by St. Catherine’s School in Richmond Nov. 9.
“I couldn’t be prouder of the Bishop Ireton field hockey team — not only for their accomplishments on the field, but for their dedication to one another and to their school throughout the season,” said Head of School Kathleen McNutt. “These young ladies demonstrated true sportsmanship, tremendous skill, and strength of character.”
