Field hockey has record-breaking season
The Saint Joseph’s field hockey team made it until the conference championship before losing a game to a conference opponent this season. After an undefeated year in the Atlantic 10, the Hawks defeated the Saint Francis University Red Flash before falling to the University of Massachusetts Minutewomen in the A-10 championship game on Saturday, Nov. 5.
The game was scoreless until late in the first half when the Minutewomen’s Izzie Delario scored to give her squad a 1-0 lead heading into halftime. The Hawks eventually answered in the second half when sophomore Anna Willocks scored off a penalty corner to tie the game. Unfortunately for St. Joe’s, Nicole Miller of Massachusetts scored the final goal of the game helping her team to a 2-1 victory.
Losses are always tough, but they’re even tougher when they come in the season’s final game. However, after the phenomenal season the Hawks were able to put together, St. Joe’s Head Coach Lynn Farquhar feels there’s no reason for any of the players to be hanging their heads.
“I think it was a fantastic season for us,” Farquhar said. “We did a lot of firsts this year, so I’m really proud of them.”
The Hawks finished their first undefeated season in conference in over twenty years and ended the regular season ranked 20th in the nation according to the NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll. Their RPI, though, ranked them 19th in the nation.
“Really, I told them that I’m proud of them,” Farquhar said. “Again, our goal was just to go in and play with our heart and leave everything on the field and have no regrets. I think we did that. At the end of the day, it wasn’t the result we wanted, but we had the choice to control what we could control and we did that.”
Willocks, freshman Pepa Serrano, and freshman Victoria Kammerinke were all named to the All-Championship team following Saturday’s game, but their contributions have provided so much for the Hawks all season long.
“From the very start to the very end, they were great individual players, but even more importantly, great teammates,” Farquhar said. “I think when we talk about setting a standard for the years to come, they all did that. Victoria saved a stroke in a final championship game—that was huge and that’s not an easy thing to do. Anna with her ability to finish in the attack generated so much for the team. And then Pepa coming in as a freshman along with Victoria making such a big impact in her first year. They deserve those awards, and, again, I give them so much credit for being great teammates.”
The standard has certainly been set very high for future teams, but this team is young. With only five seniors, next year’s roster should look very similar, or at least the names on the roster should. With more experience under their belts, the returning players should come back next year even better and stronger.
Among the players expected to return is Willocks, who led the A-10 in goals and points and was tied for the lead in assists with teammate, and expected returner, Serrano.
The Hawks were not selected to participate in this year’s NCAA tournament, but that’s a destination they’ll strive to reach within the coming seasons.
“We will get there,” Farquhar said. “It’s not our time yet. We have to win the A-10 and increase our strength of schedule a little bit… I think it’s part of the process and we will get there.”
All season, Farquhar preached and emphasized that their goal was to get better every game. She mentioned that, sometimes, you’ll take a step back before leaping forward, but the team wase always aiming to get better. They did just that.
Every game, the Hawks improved and every game, they performed. They competed, they entertained, and they won. Although they didn’t come away with the trophy at the end of the season, the Hawks showed not just their fans, but the NCAA as a whole that they’re for real.
