At the end of the field hockey season, Mercy's team will go to the home of its leading scorer and captain Jenna Parr and celebrate this season's Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland C Conference Championship with a team dinner.

But the Magic aren't waiting to celebrate their third C Conference crown in four years -- this one won Oct. 31, by a 2-1 margin over Annapolis Area Christian. Eagles goalie E. Ferguson had five saves, while Mercy's Abby Baker made two.

K. Latney scored the initial goal in the game for Annapolis, but then Jenna Benje scored off an assist from Parr, who would also go on to score the winning goal.

"It was so exciting," Parr said. "Oh my gosh!. We played Annapolis twice in the regular season and they beat us both times. After losing those two games, to win this one, to come back from a goal down, it was unbelievable."

For Parr it was the exclamation point at the end of an amazing career. The senior has insulin-dependent diabetes and Autoimmune Polyglandular Syndrome type 2, which means she is susceptible to many autoimmune diseases. But nothing has stopped her from being at the top of her game. Over four seasons she has scored 52 goals and recorded 25 assists.

This year, her tally was 17 goals and 12 assists. She had one goal and one assist against AACS, despite the fact that her blood sugar levels swung from a dangerous morning low of 45 to an undesirable high of more than 400 by the end of the game.

Mercy coach Alex Chambers was impressed by the effort of her entire team.

"We really turned it on," said Chambers, whose team finished the season 13-2-1. "It was amazing to see the transformation in our team from one half to the next. The chemistry. The continuity.

"I think Annapolis thought they had it won when they scored that first goal."

But Saturday's game did not go the way the first two meetings between these two did.

AACS was playing its third game in about 36 hours because of weather and religious issues, but also found itself playing against an inspired Mercy team that would not give up.

"It was a beautiful way to end the season," Chambers said. "I think if we had lost I wouldn't have minded because my team used everything they had."

Posted by Sandra McKee at 5:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Field hockey
        

Mount de Sales athletic director Gene Williams reports that a water main break forced the school to close at 10:30 this morning, but that all playoff games will go on with a few adjustments:

The IAAM A Conference volleyball semifinal game to be hosted by Mount de Sales with McDonogh has been moved to McDonogh. The starting time remains 4:15 p.m.

The IAAM B conference semifinal field hockey game, also with McDonogh, will be played at St. Paul’s at 2 p.m.

Posted by Katherine Dunn at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association field hockey playoffs get under way Tuesday with 11 games being played before the regional quarterfinals Thursday.

The nice thing about the MPSSAA is that every team gets to play – everyone from undefeated Westminster to Havre de Grace, which has yet to win a game or even score a goal this season. Each team gets to enter the playoffs and enjoy for a little while, at least, the anticipation that something wonderful could happen.

Here is the Oct. 29 quarterfinal matchups in The Baltimore Sun’s local circulation area:

1A North: Patterson Mill, Harford Tech and Sparrows Point byes; Loch Raven at Joppatowne, 3:30.

1A West: Owings Mills and Carver A&T byes; Manchester Valley at Pikesville, 3:30 p.m.

1A South: Havre de Grace at St. Michael’s, 4 p.m.

2A North: Bel Air or North East-Cecil at Fallston, 3:30; Edgewood at Rising Sun, 3:30; Elkton at Lansdowne, 6 p.m.; Dundalk at Eastern Tech, 3:30.

2A West: Wheaton or Francis Scott Key at Century; North Carroll at Winters Mill, 3:30; Rockville or Walkersville at South Carroll.

2A South: McDonough or Southern-AA at Glenelg, 3:30; Long Reach at Marriotts Ridge; Oakland Mills at Calvert, 3:30; Hammond at Patuxent, 6 p.m.

3A East: Wilde Lake at Howard, 3:30 p.m.; Centennial at Atholton, 3:30; Northeast-AA at Reservoir, 3:30; Mt. Hebron at River Hill, 3:30.

3A North: Aberdeen or North Harford at Hereford, 4 p.m.; Patapsco at Towson, 3:45; Catonsville at C.M.Wright, 3:30; Franklin at Parkville, 3:30.

4A East: Annapolis at Leonardtown, 6 p.m.; Great Mills at Severna Park, 5 p.m.; North Point at Broadneck, 6 p.m.; Arundel at South River, 6 p.m.

4A North: Glen Burnie at Dulaney, 3:30; North County at Perry Hall, 3:30; Chesapeake-AA at Old Mill, 3:30.

4A West: Thomas Johnson at Westminster, 6 p.m.

Posted by Sandra McKee at 2:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

My first regular season covering field hockey is now behind me, but before moving into postseason play, here are a few of the things I’ve noticed.

Determining a Top 15 poll is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.

Games played on turf between two good teams look a lot like a Foosball game on a felt table.

Corner plays that are supposed to be a major advantage to the team that gets them often are not. Bryn Mawr, however, is adept at making opportunities count and has what might be the best corner play among private schools and possibly of any school in the state.

Roland Park’s Sally E. Nyborg Invitational Tournament is a wonderful way to see some of the best teams in public and private schools play -- even on a rainy day. Not to mention it also raises money for Lupus research.

Broadneck’s Courtney Tomchik is an outstanding ballhandler on a team that plays a beautiful long-ball game.

Fans at field hockey games get just as excited as football fans.

Once positioned in the Top 15, it is difficult to move up the poll when the teams above you keep winning.

Fallston senior forward Caitlin Dempsey, South River senior midfielder Brooke Griffin, Dulaney senior forward Hannah Whiteley, Westminster senior forward Lauren Keffer and Bryn Mawr senior forward Paige Hanson are Energizer bunnies.

Once positioned in the Top 15, it is difficult to move up even if you win and another team loses if they’re ranked higher and then start to win again before your team can reach their ranking.

No. 2 Westminster (13-0) knows that feeling, sitting behind No. 1 Garrison Forest (14-1-2).

Hidden inside Severna Park’s goalie -- well, maybe not so hidden -- must be the heart of an artist with a large color palette. Senior Ashley Dalisera comes to play in an array of colors. Her inside leg pads are maroon. Her pants dark blue. Her vest lime green. And topping it all off -- a baby-doll-pink helmet.

High schools generally need to improve their press box facilities that serve not only field hockey but also football team announcers and statisticians besides the media.

Field hockey is a touchy sport. A lot of whistles. Several Fallston football players showed up at the Cougars’ first game of the season. After watching for about 10 minutes, one of them shook his head. “This game has too many rules!” he said.

Garrison Forest, whose team is not often populated with freshmen, has several dynamic ones. Among them, Brooke Adler and Cody Magness.

The Westminster defense could rival the famous Steel Curtain of the NFL’s 1972-1974 Pittsburgh Steelers. The Owls have eight shutouts and have given up only five goals while going 14-0. Take a bow, Emily Cauliflower, Michelle Hodiak, Kara Evans, Carlyn Thompson and Ashley Franklin.

Hereford’s defense, which has seven shutouts, and Fallston’s, which also has seven and an 11-game winning streak since opening the season with three straight losses, are also impressive.
A team can have a wonderful season like B Conference competitor McDonogh (13-2) and still have difficulty getting the attention it deserves.

Field hockey players are tough. They play through torrential downpours, biting cold and wind.

They do it in short skirts and knee socks, while their fans sit bundled in multiple layers of warm clothing, under blankets with umbrellas.

All of it is pretty impressive.

Posted by Sandra McKee at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

South Carroll midfielder Briannah Smith will be working hard Monday, trying to help her team get to double-digits in the win column. The Cavaliers are 9-3, and Briannah leads the team in assists.

Her efforts earned her the Ravens' Athlete of the Week honors for her consistency, dedication and leadership abilities.

"I thought she was deserving of the award," said South Carroll coach Ashley Bacon, who has nominated players in past years but saw Smith become the team's first winner. "She's a very well-rounded player and an exceptional athlete. She's always pushing herself and her teammates to get better."

Smith is usually the first player at practice and the last to leave and leads by example.

"I've played for nine years," said Smith, who was chosen from hundreds of nominations. "I work well with my teammates and I felt very honored to receive the award. I really appreciate my coach nominating me."

Smith will receive a Ravens jersey, tickets to a home game, a hat and the Ravens will donate $500 to her field hockey team.

The Cavaliers host Winters Mill at 4 p.m. Monday.

- Sandra McKee

Posted by Sandra McKee at 7:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

Broadneck senior forward Courtney Tomchik has surpassed Brigitte Strother as the leader in total points in Bruins field hockey history. She currently has 49 goals and 33 assists for her career (82 points). Tomchik has also taken the lead as the school's all-time assist leader.

When Strother left two years ago, she had 54 goals and 15 assists (69 points). The former Bruin is now a sophomore at the University of Maryland, where she is playing for the No. 1-ranked and undefeated Terrapins, getting good playing time coming off the bench.

Posted by Sandra McKee at 1:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

The Baltimore County girls field hockey championships scheduled for Thursday have been postponed to Monday, Oct. 19. The JV game will be played at 4 p.m.and the varsity game at 7 p.m. Both games are scheduled to be played at Lansdowne High.

Posted by Sandra McKee at 1:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

Archbishop Spalding field hockey coach Leslee Brady e-mailed on Tuesday to say two of her former players are being inducted into the school's athletic Hall of Fame on Friday.

"It's not often that field hockey players are inducted," Brady said. "It's a rather obscure sport."

The two former players being inducted during the school's homecoming game are defender Maureen Brady Doran from the 2003 team and forward Erin Kelly, who graduated in 2004.

Brady said both players were captains of their teams, all-county, all-metro, all-conference and all-state players.

What she didn't say until much later, when asked just how rare it is for a field hockey player to be inducted, was that Doran is her married daughter, who is joining her older sister and brother in the Spalding Hall of Fame.

Before Doran and Kelly, the last field hockey player named to the hall was Kat Brady Nepp, who graduated in 1998 and was inducted in 2002. Maureen's and Kat's brother Matt, a 1996 graduate, is also in the Spalding Hall of Fame for his performances on the baseball and basketball teams.

Posted by Sandra McKee at 7:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

When it comes to tough luck, Severn’s field hockey team knows how to give and receive.

The Admirals are 6-7 this season. Four of those wins — including victories over then-No. 2 Severna Park and No. 15 St. Mary's — and five of the losses were by one goal.

In fact, those five one-goal losses were all to Top 15 teams.

The score book reads like a trip through field hockey’s version of Murderers’ Row: a 1-0 loss to No. 1 Broadneck, a 1-0 loss to No. 2 Garrison Forest, 2-1 to No. 7 Notre Dame Prep, 2-1 to No. 11 Archbishop Spalding and, Monday, a 1-0 loss to NDP, again.

Now comes Wednesday’s 4 p.m. home game against No. 6 Bryn Mawr followed by Friday’s trip to No. 2 Garrison Forest for another rematch.

Sooner or later, you would think the Admirals would have to break free of the one-goal string and go on a scoring binge.

Posted by Sandra McKee at 10:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

At the start of this field hockey season, Fallston was believed to have a very good team. But as three straight losses piled up, no one seemed sure anymore. Cougars coach Megan Grant just kept saying her team had to learn to finish their chances.

In Fallston's fourth game, a comeback victory over No. 7 Hereford, Grant's team finished what it started, beating the bulls, 4-3. Since, they’ve outscored opposing teams 17-2 with four of their past five games being shutouts.

"We played a really tough schedule out of the block," Grant said. "We were working really hard, but we just weren't getting results and we were having a hard time scoring goals. The girls continued to work hard despite our 0-3 record. And then we had a huge come-from-behind first win against a strong Hereford team, and this was the turnaround point for us.

"The girls gained a lot of confidence in themselves and as a team."

Fallston is led by Caitlin Dempsey (nine goals, four assists) and Jenn Ward (six goals, two assists), and has strong leadership in the backfield with Leah Perrotta and Sammi Mosketti and Anne Morgan Milchling in goal.

"The girls are working very hard and will continue to work hard because we have a lot of tough games ahead of us," Grant said. "Our main focus is to keep improving."

Fallston will try to keep its winning streak going Friday against North Harford.

-- Sandra McKee

Posted by Steve Gould at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

One of the best neighborhood rivalries in the entire metro area can be found in Anne Arundel County, where Severna Park and Broadneck have maintained excellent athletic programs throughout the years.

In the next couple days, the rivalry will add new layers with the schools battling it out in a number of sports.

On Thursday, the No. 3 Broadneck volleyball team will travel to No. 5 Severna Park for a 5 p.m. match.

Later on Thursday, Broadneck's newly-anointed No. 1 field hockey team also visits Severna Park to take on the No. 3 and defending Class 4A state champ Falcons at 7 p.m.

On Friday, boys soccer takes center stage when the No. 2 Falcons travel to No. 4 Broadneck at 7 p.m.

Posted by Glenn Graham at 2:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Boys soccer, Field hockey, Volleyball
        

The No. 1 Garrison Forest field hockey team responded like champions after its first loss of the season, when it beat a determined No. 10 Archbishop Spalding team, 4-1, Wednesday. And Spalding, in defeat, also demonstrated its good character.

The Grizzlies felt the sting of its first defeat Monday in a 2-1 loss to No. 11 Fallston, but coach Traci Davis saw her precocious freshman Brooke Adler score three goals Wednesday and the rest of her team settle down after the upset loss.

"We talked about some things that had to improve," Davis said, declining to reveal most of them. "One thing was our passing. Fallston took us out of our game and out of our rhythm."

Against Spalding, Davis had her team return to basics: completing passes; keeping the ball low. "Making each other look good," she said. "And having fun."

Ah, yes. Fun. It's a game, after all. But the desire to win can sometime become as intense as it is on higher levels.

"Sometimes you forget to have fun," Davis said. "Against Spalding, everyone had fun."

You could see it in their faces -- even in the faces of the Spalding players, who laughed after hard hits, and got to celebrate a goal near the end of the 4-1 affair, demonstrating they would not give up.

And when it was all over, the sound of sportsmanship sounded like the buzz of happy bees, as the two teams walked past each other clasping hands and saying in repetitious unison, "Good game!', Good game!', "Good game!'

Posted by Sandra McKee at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

The Friends field hockey team (0-4-1) is still looking for its first victory of the season, and for goalie Hannah Gartner, a win can't come soon enough.

Friends coach Judy Turnbaugh said her goalie "is totally awesome", but Gartner, a 16-year-old junior in her third year as the varsity team's goalie, said she isn't finding much joy in being a standout player when her team doesn't win.

"When I make a lot of saves, it means the other teams are dominating, and that's not good," said Gartner, who has recorded 91 saves in five games this season, with the high a 27-save performance in a 3-0 loss to No. 13 McDonogh. "Sometimes I feel the pressure down at our end because I want us to win."

Gartner has been a goalie since she was in sixth grade and acknowledges that she might have gotten bored with the position had her teams totally dominated play and left her to idly man the net with little to do. But that's not the way her playing days have gone. There has always been action around her net.

Which might explain why she is so very good at stopping shots.

"I try to be aggressive," Gartner said, "and I think one of my strengths is making quick decisions. Of just knowing when to stay up and when to go down. Talking to the girls around me helps, too. My defense really helps me."

Gartner said her team is getting better. After an 0-3 start in which Friends allowed eight goals, the team has played its past two opponents very tough, playing to a 2-2 overtime tie with John Carroll and then losing in overtime to Park, 1-0.

Friends will try again for its first victory tomorrow at Seton Keough.

"In the past I've always liked the action in goal," she said. "But now, on varsity, I love when we're dominating play because what I want most is for us to win."

— Sandra McKee

Posted by Sandra McKee at 2:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey
        

Roland Park will host its annual Sally E.Nyborg Field Hockey Invitational Saturday, an event which has drawn some of the best field hockey teams in the Baltimore-Washington area since it began in 1998. Teams will play for a good cause -- to raise money for lupus research.

Nyborg, a Reds field hockey player, died of complications from lupus in the spring of her junior year of 1998 and the tournament began the following fall.

Competition opens at 9 a.m. with Roland Park taking on No. 6 Westminster followed by No. 2 Severna Park vs. No. 10 Fallston at 11:15, Bethesda-Chevy Chase vs. St. Stephen’s/St. Agnes at 11:30 and Fallston vs. Westminster at 12:45. Two games will be played simultaneously at 2:15 to cap off the day: Severna Park vs. BCC and Roland Park vs. St. Stephen’s/St. Agnes.

The four public school teams -- Severna Park, BCC, Fallston and Westminster -- have won 48 state championships among them with Severna Park taking a record 18. Roland Park has won three IAAM A Conference titles since 2002 and St. Stephen's/St. Agnes,f rom Alexandria, Va., is a perennial Washington, D.C. private schools powerhouse.

Here is more information about the tournament. This news release comes from Roland Park’s communications department:

On May 17, 1998, Sally Elizabeth Nyborg, a varsity field hockey player and a member of the Class of 1999 at Roland Park Country School, died from complications caused by lupus. A very bright and energetic teenager, Sally challenged herself in all aspects of her life, including field hockey - her passion. She participated in the U.S. Futures Program and relished the challenge of learning and competing with some of the area’s best high school athletes. Sally also loved to run and to help others, demonstrated by the $1,800 she raised for the Leukemia Society by running in the Marine Corps Marathon in October, 1997. All who knew Sally marveled at her work ethic and her dedication to academics, sports and all that she pursued. In Sally’s memory, and as a fundraiser for the Hopkins Lupus Research Fund, Sally’s parents, grandparents, friends and classmates established an endowment to underwrite the annual Sally E. Nyborg Invitational Field Hockey Tournament.

Anyone wishing to respond to the fight against lupus should contact:
Hopkins Lupus Research Fund
1830 East Monument Street
Suite 7500
Baltimore, Maryland 21205

*An earlier version incorrectly reported the percentage of concession proceeds to be donated.

Posted by Katherine Dunn at 11:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Field hockey