At 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 28, the John Jay girls’ field hockey team defeated Yorktown in a tight quarterfinal game. 

Yorktown scored the first goal, but then it was time for John Jay to lock in. As Finja Degl stated, “It encouraged us to push harder.” Later in the game, left forward Catherine Natko scored John Jay’s first goal, tying the match. 

It was then a tie game, which raised tensions between the rival teams. After a strong fight from Yorktown, Logan Bueti scored the final goal for John Jay. The crowd erupted with cheers—John Jay girls’ field hockey was moving on to the sectional semifinals. 

Earlier in the season, when John Jay faced Yorktown, the game went into overtime and ended with a narrow 1–0 win for John Jay. That close matchup heightened the anticipation before the quarterfinal rematch. The John Jay players were collectively nervous—they didn’t want to go into overtime again and risk losing such an important game. As center midfielder Finja Degl stated, “It always comes down to whoever wants it more when we play Yorktown.” 

The quarterfinal game was “super frantic” and “high-speed,” as described by both Finja Degl and defensive player Sarah Swiderski. The girls channeled that frantic energy into their performance—and it showed. 

At 11 a.m. on Thursday, October 30, the team faced Rye in the sectional semifinal game. Unfortunately, John Jay lost, ending the 2025 season. 

They battled through double overtime, fighting as hard as they could. Goalie McKenzie Ryder noted, “We came out strong and really wanted to win. I think we were the team who wanted to win the most.” That mindset pushed the girls to persevere, even though Rye was seeded first while John Jay was seeded fourth. They put up an incredible fight, but with one minute left, Rye scored the game-winning goal. 

In the end, John Jay finished the season with a record of 12–4–1. Reflecting on the season, McKenzie Ryder said, “Out of all the ways to lose, I think it was a good way.”