Editor's Note: This is the tenth in a series of articles profiling members of the Class of 2004 on Dartmouth varsity sports teams.
When an athlete makes the transition from high school to college, it is often said that he or she is playing on a whole new field. Nowhere is such a statement truer than in the game of field hockey, according to the rising juniors of the Big Green field hockey team.
One of the biggest challenges that the Big Green women faced upon arrival in Hanover was adjusting from the grass of their high school fields to the turf of Sculley-Fahey field and other Ivy League venues.
According to midfielder Caitlin Barrett '04, one of the biggest differences in field hockey at the high school and college levels is "ball-speed. My high school field is all bumps, and you have to kill the ball to get it anywhere, and here, it just moves so quickly, and it's so precise, and basically, you can't blame anything you do [on the ground].
"Basically, you have to put everything on yourself, so you have to take responsibility, but it's a much better game in college."
Barrett's teammate, Rebekka Stucker '04, who led the Big Green in goals during the 2001 regular season, agrees, saying, "In high school it's more like 'bash the ball up the field and sprint to get it.' In college, it's a passing game, and you have to be able to pass the ball and receive the ball."
With the distinct differences between high school and college field hockey, coming into a college program can be "very intimidating," according to Barrett. "There's a huge change to playing on turf, and the level of play is just extremely different. You have to work hard to get up to that level so you can compete, but it's worth it."
According to forward/midfielder Lauren Talbot '04, the intensity that marked the six '04s' first preseason with the Big Green was emblematic of the work required to succeed in college field hockey.
"Being a fall sport," said Talbot, "and being thrown into it, basically the first day, it's like, 'this is your team that you're going to be seeing for the next three weeks before everyone else gets to campus,' so it's a little intense, but a good intense."
Another aspect of coming to Dartmouth that was "a little intense" for the '04s was playing under a first-year head coach, Amy Fowler. The coaching change, announced less than four months before the '04s arrived, was a shock to the incoming players, including Barrett, a New Hampshire native who had attended numerous camps and clinics at Dartmouth.
According to Barrett, "I had been going to field hockey camp at Dartmouth for five years, and every field hockey camp and clinic, I went to, so I got to know the old coach [Julie Dayton] really well. We got along great, and one of the big reasons I wound up coming here was because of her, so I was initially crushed by the fact that she left. But I think Amy's a great coach and person, and everything worked out fine."
Stucker was similarly unsettled by the surprise. "I was actually a little skeptical at first," said Stucker, "because I had no idea who Amy Fowler was, but then I met her and I loved her, and I still love her as a coach and as a person."
Stucker also believes that the members of the incoming class adjusted well to the situation, saying, "I felt like the transition from the old coach to the new coach was really good in terms of our class just saying, 'OK, this is our new coach,' and adapting to the new coach's coaching philosophy."
That coaching philosophy seems to be working, as fans and players alike have ample reason to love the results of the last two seasons. Under Fowler, the '04s have helped the Big Green go 24-12 over the last two seasons, with a 9-5 Ivy League record. Last season, the Big Green women cracked the top 20 in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll, and won the ECAC tournament.
After finishing second to Columbia in 2000 ECAC tournament, the Big Green women were able to win their third ECAC tournament with a 2-0 win over Providence and a 2-1 decision over Drexel. The ECAC victory was sweet, but the Big Green '04s want more.
When asked what they'll remember most when they finish their Dartmouth careers, some members of the Dartmouth Field Hockey Class of 2004 mention things that have already happened, such as making the top 20 in the NFHCA poll, and beating Massachussets in 2001.
In general, however, the rising juniors hope that their biggest memories will be made during the next two seasons. Barrett says that she'll remember "when we make the NCAA tournament."
Forward Kristen Parkinson '04 is equally optimistic about the team's future, seeing an Ivy League title and an NCAA tournament berth in the Big Green's future. According to Parkinson, "There's so much yet to come."
As the Big Green prepare for what is "yet to come," one thing that is coming for certain is September 14. Thats when the Big Green women will travel to Brown to kick off the 2002 campaign, and give the Ivy League a taste of what the '04s feel is certainly "yet to come."
