Monroe Township High School’s Grace Martini has been a leader for the Falcons athletically and academically. She will continue her field hockey career in college at East Stroudsburg University next fall. When Greg Beyer, supervisor of athletics at Monroe Township High School, learned a story would be written about senior Grace Martini, he felt compelled to offer his own thoughts about the multi-talented student-athlete.
“In my 29 years at Monroe, Grace is one of the most dedicated athletes we have ever had,” he said. “She is an extremely hardworking young lady with competitive drive and is a great teammate. Her parents made the right choice naming their daughter Grace because that really describes what she is all about. She is compassionate, smart, funny and deserves all the accolades that come her way.”
The most recent recognition bestowed on Martini was being named the 2015 Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) field hockey player of the year. The senior forward led her team in scoring (15 goals) and helped the Falcons (17-3-1) capture their second consecutive conference tournament title.
Now that the field hockey season is over, Martini has shifted her limitless energy toward preparing for the basketball season. She is a regular for a team that made it to the GMC Tournament finals last season and won the White Division title. In the spring, she will join the softball team, which is also one of the best in the conference. However, her field hockey career will continue in college.
“I am very excited to accept an athletic scholarship to East Stroudsburg University,” she said. “It wasn’t all based around scholarship money. I met the coaching staff and [future] teammates, and they are a wonderful group. As soon as I set foot on campus, I immediately saw myself going there.”
Martini plans to major in special education rehabilitative and human services with a minor in art. She’s seriously thinking about a career in mentoring children with special needs — helping them with life skills — and possibly becoming a special education teacher in middle school or high school or recreational art therapist.
Before she entered high school, field hockey was not Martini’s primary sports interest, although she played on the middle school club level. Most of her youth was spent playing basketball and softball, and she was convinced her future would involve playing one of those sports. But once she experienced the speed of field hockey, she was hooked.
“I enjoy the fast pace because I can get into a zone and, to be honest, not over think things too much,” she said. “I just go out and play my game.”
That was one reason Martini made the decision between her sophomore and junior years to devote all of her time and energy to improving her field hockey skills. “I was a member of a U19 college showcase team but also played for a club field hockey team,” she said. “I thought about it and finally told my softball coach I would finish out the fall season but wouldn’t be back in the spring. I would never know how good I could be if I didn’t devote myself to playing field hockey on a high level. Look how it turned out.”
Regardless of the sport or season, Martini believes her most important asset is how coachable she is.
“My goal is to always portray a picture of leadership and kindness on and off the field,” she said. “I’m relentless when it comes to doing my best. I try and use my field vision and sense about what’s happening. Working hard, being aggressive and giving it my all has helped me reach my potential. Finally, I tend to be my own hardest critic.” Grace used that motivation to achieve the difficult task of balancing schoolwork with sports, and she was rewarded by being elected to the National Honor Society.
“I can just hear my mom’s voice in my head [saying] ‘time management’ when it comes to maintaining good grades and playing sports,” Martini said. “I was told in middle school that if I didn’t get As and Bs, I couldn’t play sports.”
As a result, Martini learned early on to successfully juggle practice and games with the effort to do well in school, and she has kept that focus throughout high school. Martini summed up her priorities in the following order: family, faith, school and athletics.
Her parents, Matt and Kim, and older sister Courtney have had the biggest positive impact on her life, as have close friends and coaches. Martini said she is inspired every day by watching as her sister battles a potentially terminal disease and how she fights to remain strong.
“[That] has been an emotional struggle for me, but I have not allowed the situation to interfere with my academic and athletic pursuits,” Martini said.
Martini will conclude her high school athletic career as one of two athletes — along with Ashlyn Peterson — who have played in the most GMC Tournament championship games in Monroe history: two each in field hockey, basketball and softball. Each of those teams has broken the school record for most wins.
Outside of sports, Martini volunteers teaching children with autism at Barclay Brook Elementary School and teaching art in the high school to classmates with special needs.
“I don’t do this because I want to earn the accolades of others,” she said. “That’s not my nature. I just like helping others because it just makes me feel good inside.”