Schiavo reaches career milestone as unbeaten field hockey rolls to 5th straight win

For the fifth consecutive game to open the season, the Canton High varsity field hockey team defeated a Hockomock League opponent and made it look easy as they rolled past Milford 9-1 on the road Monday night to stay unbeaten at 5-0-0 overall.

Senior captain Carolyn Schiavo recorded her 100th career point in Monday’s win vs. Milford (Mike Tureski photo)

While they have yet to face a truly elite opponent, the Bulldogs have certainly done their part and have built up some good momentum heading into this week’s showdown against an always formidable Oliver Ames team.

“That game I think will give us a better indication of where we stand, but it’s hard to say because we haven’t been challenged too much at this point,” noted head coach Chrissy O’Connor. “We certainly have more scoring power than we’ve had over the past few years, and I’d say the early projections are showing that we could do extremely well this season.”

O’Connor said the team is fortunate to have two legitimate star players in junior Shannon Lane and senior captain Carolyn Schiavo, who are neck and neck in total goals scored with 10 for Lane and nine for Schiavo through five games. Both players recorded a hat trick in Monday’s victory over Milford, while Schiavo reached a new career milestone with her 100th point in a Bulldog uniform.

“Certainly the combination of Carolyn and Shannon makes us a threat to go far,” said O’Connor. “Having one person to cover and game-plan against can be difficult enough for an opponent, but when you have two players with that kind of skill and finishing ability, it gives us a real advantage.”

Both players are also proven playmakers, and Lane has been especially effective in setting up her teammates, racking up double-digit assists through the first few weeks of the season after leading the entire league in that category last year.

Besides Lane and Schiavo, the Bulldogs also boast several secondary scoring options, most notably senior captain Nora Giannacopoulos (5 goals, 1 assist) and junior Cassidy Lyons (3 goals, 3 assists), who form a strong midfield corps along with senior captain Michaela Dickie and junior Riley Blake.

Against the Hawks, freshman Kate Giannacopoulos also got in on the scoring action, as did juniors Annie Eckler and Ava Starr, who netted one goal apiece.

On the other end of the field, Canton is fortunate to have an experienced and skilled goalie in senior captain Shealyn Murphy, and while the defensive corps is younger, there is no shortage of talent in the backfield, led by sophomores Ellie Young and Tabitha McCready and juniors Starr and Grace Martinek. Freshman Violet Penders has also made the most of her playing time thus far and is one of a few promising newcomers along with Kait Giannacopoulos and Julie Flood.

As a team, the Bulldogs have surrendered just two goals to date, which is tied for the best mark in the Hockomock League with Kelley-Rex Division leader Franklin (5-0-0). On offense, Canton has scored a league-best 39 goals — good for an average of nearly eight per game — and they already have a two-game lead in the Davenport standings over second-place Stoughton (3-2-0).

After playing Oliver Ames on Wednesday, the Bulldogs will next welcome Taunton to town for a home game tomorrow afternoon beginning at 3:45 p.m. The team then begins a stretch of three in a row on the road, starting next Thursday against the rival Black Knights.

Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=132366

Posted by Jay Turner on Sep 19 2025. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.