The Oberlin Review
<< Front page News November 12, 2004

Inconsistent season for FH

With an overall winning record of 10-9-0, the Yeowomen of field hockey are happy with many aspects of their season and look forward to refining their skills next year. “We made a lot of improvements this year and learned more about our playing style,” said Head Coach Deb Ranieri.

Oberlin finished their season with a total of 38 goals, 335 shots and 133 saves.

Notables on the team include junior captain Meg Reitz, senior captain Jamie Johnson and first-year goalie Lauren Malinowski. Reitz started every game of the season and was the high scorer of the team with 13 goals. Malinowski started 17 of the 18 games she played in and had an outstanding 121 saves, 84 percent of the seasons total.

Johnson was chosen for the NCAC All-Team tournament by the four teams — Wittenberg, Kenyon, Oberlin and Wooster — who participated. Her most notable achievements of the season include the games against OWU and Wooster, where she scored the winning goal in overtime.

Throughout the season, the team had many ups and downs, with big wins such as their 7-0 game against Wooster and hard losses such as a 3-0 loss against Kenyon in the NCAC playoffs to end their season. “We had a lot of really close games which made for a really emotional season,” said sophomore Clair Cheney. Cheney, another standout on Oberlin’s offensive line, started every game and had a total of four goals during the season.

“We’re all a little disappointed with the outcome of the season,” said Ranieri. “There were times when we let down mentally and didn’t play as a team.” There were some losses, though, that showed what the team was capable of. At their away game against Wooster, Oberlin lost 2-1 but Ranieri said that “[The Yeowomen] still played well and as a team. We were scoring more goals this season then before, and we were having different people scoring them. Defense also learned a lot and did a great job.”

Ranieri has high hopes for next year’s season. “Over the last three years we’ve had a lot of improvement. I think we’ll have a very strong team next year.”

The team will be losing three players: Dianne Hurvitz, Elaine Hill and Johnson. Hurvitz played 12 games this season as an attacker, while Hill played four as a defender. Ranieri remembers these players as “a strong group,” and players such as first-year Kate Cook remembers them as “great leaders and role models.”
 
 

   

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