By: Carolyn M. Hartko
Field Hockey is a rarity among high school sports. It is a sport most players have not even seen, let alone played, until their freshman year.
Unlike soccer, basketball, baseball and softball, there are no community youth leagues to introduce basic skills and build enthusiasm for the sport. As the only feeder system for the varsity team, this makes the younger teams in a field hockey program more important than in other sports.
When South Brunswick promoted field hockey from a club to a varsity sport three years ago, the JV squad was the only training ground for future Viking. Last year, a freshman team was added as interest grew. This year, coach Melissa Bonstead took over the difficult task of running the first rung on the field hockey ladder at SBHS. Bonstead believes the goals for her freshmen are twofold.
"For one thing, we’re getting the girls into really good athletic shape with conditioning and running," the coach said. "So towards the end of the game, they’re really strong and they’re not letting the other team score in the last five minutes of the game."
"And we want the girls to learn a lot of the real basic skills, because most of these girls have never played before," Bonstead added. "Where a lot of other schools have feeder programs, we’ve got to push strong basic skills. As they move up to a new level, than they can start expanding their skills more on the field."
The freshmen have the lightest schedule in the program, mostly because not all the schools in the Greater Middlesex Conference have ninth grade squads. As of Monday, the Vikings had only played two out of seven matches, but they are off to a good start at 1-0-1. South played Old Bridge to a scoreless tie in the season opener, then beat East Brunswick, 2-1. Ashley Wondishen and Jess Talarick both scored in the victory.
"The girls definitely played better at East Brunswick," Bonstead said. "They were challenging the play in the circle a lot more, whereas they laid back a little bit with Old Bridge. They passed the ball really well, they were very aggressive, and they cut to the ball."
Goalie Megan Loftus was solid in the cage for the Vikings, and sweeper Kristy Zimmerman did a good job of organizing the defense.
"Kristy’s been able to clear the ball out almost every time it comes in," Bonstead said. "She has a lot of abilities, so hopefully she’ll grow into a really strong player."
Bonstead knows a thing or two about winning, as well as about field hockey. She played on a middle school team, and for state power Shawnee High School in Burlington County.
"We won states my senior year, and we were in the playoffs both my sophomore and junior year," Bonstead said. "We had an outstanding field hockey program."
After their year on the ninth grade squad, the girls will be ready to move up to JV. Lisa Ripa, who coached the freshmen last year, has taken over that team. Ripa is another former South Jersey player who has become a coach, playing at Delsea Regional High School.
Unlike the ninth graders, the JV schedule mirrors the varsity’s. After three straight ties last week, the JV is 1-4-4. They beat Piscataway, and ended in a deadlock with Old Bridge, Monroe and Metuchen. Ripa was pleased with the way her team played all last week.
"The girls just played awesome," the coach said. "They played as a team. They had so much fun, and they worked really hard."
The Monroe game stands out because the Vikings scored off a corner. Emily Kotarski knocked in the equalizer with an assist from Sam Shapiro. Marcie Winiarz has been outstanding in goal for the JV, and she also acts as back-up goalie for varsity. All three players are sophomores, as is Nicole Charvaneau, who has been a help on the attack.
About half of the JV players came into the season with a year of experience with the freshman team. But there are still a good number of sophomores and juniors on the roster who are new to the sport.
"Right now, we’re not so worried about our record," Ripa said. "Basically, our goal is to get better as a team. We want the girls to improve their skills. And score. We’ve had a problem scoring.
"These girls are very optimistic. They’re very encouraging of each other. They like to have a good time, and they’re fun to be around. And they’re getting better every day."
There is one more exciting development in South Brunswick that will help the high school program: field hockey has been introduced to girls at the middle school.
