Field hockey ends season with blast of energy

As temperatures drop and snow begins to fall, Oberlin College prepares for another harsh Ohio winter without the joys of field hockey.

With the conclusion of this past weekend's Great Lakes Regional Tournament, the Yeowomen find themselves stickless for the next seven months. A few may pick up lacrosse in the spring, but what's a fan to do once the last whistle has sounded? Reflect, reminisce and wolf down the last available dregs of hockey commentary.

When we last left the Yeowomen, they were giving Denison University the surprise of its life, coming within a hair of beating the Big Red and tarnishing their undefeated conference record. Oberlin's brush with victory propelled the team to a fine tournament performance against admittedly less qualified opponents. Junior Annabeth Macy felt that the Yeowomen had something to prove going into the tourney. "What we really wanted to do was to show everybody we were in the wrong bracket," she said.

The team did precicisly that in Saturday's game by demolishing Rhodes College 8-0, holding the Lynx to five shots on goal compared to the Yeowomen's 36. Oberlin scored six goals in the first half, unleashing the team's full strength on offense and refusing to back down as the game progressed. Sophomore Emily Johnson and junior Abigail Chatfield netted two goals each, while sophomore Vanessa Wirth led the onslaught with three. Johnson also had a trio of assists on the day. Goalkeepers Pam Walker and Emily Ravich combined for the shutout.

Saturday's blowout victory was partly a release of the tremendous intensity built up against Denison. "I think our game on Thursday [versus Denison] set us up for the weekend," Macy said. Sophomore Jessica Raynor agreed. "Without that game, I don't think we would have been as successful [in the tournament]," she said.

According to senior Maggie McFalls, Saturday's game was a breakthrough in player interaction. "In terms of our game [against Rhodes], we had amazing connections and executions," she said. "The big thing that was different this weekend was communication on the field. Communication like that shows trust in your teammates." Several teammates echoed this idea. "When we communicate on the field, we play our best," said Raynor.

Oberlin continued to show why they were in the wrong tournament bracket with a 4-2 victory over Transylvania University the next day. The Pioneers entered the weekend ranked fifth in the KIT [Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee] conference, seemingly evenly matched to Oberlin's #5 ranking in the NCAC. But the rankings were deceptive, since the NCAC has been considerably stronger than the KIT this year. In fact, out of 10 tournament matchups between the conferences, the NCAC claimed victory eight times. The Yeowomen followed this pattern, nearly doubling Transylvania's total shots on goal (15-8) while continuing to crank out production on offense. First-year Briana Quinn led Oberlin with two goals, both assisted by Wirth.

Wirth's impressive performance in the tournament, coupled with her play in the Denison loss, earned her the NCAC's "Athlete of the Week" award in field hockey. Against Denison, Wirth scored both goals in an eventual 3-2 double overtime loss. She ended the season as team scoring leader with nine goals and two assists for a total of 20 points and a 1.18 points-per-game average.

"This past week was a really great representation of what our team has become," Raynor said. "It was nice to end the season with some good wins." Saturday's game, in which all 18 members of the team participated, emphasized the closeness that has developed among the players. "Towards the end [of the season], we finally started to mesh pretty well," first-year Chaney Stewman remarked. "The last three games showed us how we can and should be playing."

The season's upbeat finale bodes well for the Yeowomen of 2000. Looking forward to next year's team, Head Coach Elizabeth Graham hoped "to see continued improvement," she said. "I'd like to see us start off next year as we finished this year," said McFalls, who will graduate in the spring. She saw the climactic game against Denison as a potential springboard into next season. "The energy there ... the whole other team was shaking in their boots," she said. "I hope that next year we'll be able to ride that wave." Macy noted Oberlin's recent progress and predicted a bright future for the team.

"There really isn't anywhere to go but up from here," she said.

They haven't been all salad days for the team, however. Compared to last year's Yeowomen, the 1999 squad had a lot of growing to do. "There was a serious learning curve that took place throughout the season," Coach Graham said. McFalls, having just completed her fourth year on the team, offered insight into last season as compared to this one. "[On] last year's team, the dynamic and chemistry were something that only happens once in four years," she said. "We had cohesion on and off the field. Last year was an amazing year."

Certain aspects of this year's team marked a significant improvement. "I think that we worked a lot more with our passing game this year," she said. "We have probably the fastest fast break in the conference," said Raynor.

"I'm just really excited for next season. As long as we can start off with some good scoring, we can do well," she said.

The Yeowomen will only graduate one starter, McFalls, and currently don't expect to lose any others. In contrast, this year's conference champion, Denison, will lose at least six. Could this season's talented roster lead Oberlin to a higher bracket in next year's tournament? Very possibly, according to Coach Graham. "People are starting to get comfortable with their positions," she said, adding that the sheer number of returning players will be "one of the luxuries" of coaching next year. If all goes to plan, and Coach Graham can pick up some solid recruits,next year's team will amass a luxurious collection of wins to match.

Last dance with Mary Jane: The field hockey team finished off a strong season by participating in the Great Lakes Regional Tournament, in which they dominated both games played. (photo by Brian Hodgkin)