GREAT KIDS: Avon field hockey player scores incredible goal

AVON, CT (WFSB) - She is the heart of her Avon field hockey team.

Yet, she never plays.

Until this season.

When she did, it was a moment that transcended the sport and resonated with winning on and off the field.

To understand Kaylie Murphy, all you have to do is see her smile.

Fifteen-year-old Kaylie is autistic.

She loves sports and being a part of a team.

This year she made the field hockey team.

“She’s a player. She’s on the team,” said Coach Terri Ziemnicki.

In a game earlier this season with Avon winning 5-0, her coach had an idea.

“She was sitting on the bench. and I said this was a great time to put Kaylie in. So, I went to the stands said to the mom is okay to put Kaylie in and she said ok,” Terri said.

Sophomore teammate Leah Cuyler went in with her.

“I was so happy she was out there under the lights in this varsity game. She seemed so happy out there and that just made me happy,” said Leah.

What happened next was unplanned and unexpected.

That is exactly what took place, and cell phone video captured it all.

Kaylie got in the game and with her teammates by her side, encouraging her every step of the way, they set her up and she did the rest, scoring a goal!

“Kaylie, did you jump up and down, did you score?” asked Eyewitness News.

“I scored,” said Kylie.

“You scored. Were you happy?” Eyewitness News asked.

“Yes,” Kaylie said.

Her biggest cheerleader is her mom Michelle. She came down to the sidelines and through tears saw her daughter’s triumph.

“It was so tremendous at that moment and it’s just now that I’ve had more time to process it, is more than I could have ever imagined,” said Michelle.

From her teammates to the opposing team East Catholic, they all created this moment in a special kind of sportsmanship that makes everyone a winner.

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