By Jimmy Allinder
The genesis of Zoe Rosen’s venture playing field hockey began when she was a seventh-grader in the Monroe Township school district.
Middle school coach Jean Elias opened the first day of tryouts as she always did — asking for volunteers to play goalie.
Rosen, knowing little about the game but yearning to play anyway she could, gazed at the goaltender’s equipment that would transform her into a bear emerging from hibernation, shrugged her shoulders and raised her hand.
The rest of this story is about a young lady whose gutsy decision eventually rewarded her with a scholarship offer, which she accepted, from Fairfield University, an NCAA Division I member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC).
“I really took the sport [and position] seriously after I attended a four-day goalkeeping clinic the summer before I entered high school [in 2013],” Rosen said. “I worked hard in preseason practice and was hoping to win the varsity job.”
Save the first half of the season-opener, Rosen has started in goal since. During the three years she’s been goalie, she has played for two Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) Tournament championship teams, was named the GMC Defensive Player of the Year as a junior and recorded 27 shutouts and 341 saves.
“Up until high school, I played a lot of lacrosse and I really thought that would be my primary sport,” Rosen said. “I still play for the high school team, but my focus now is field hockey and how I can improve my goaltending skills.”
It’s a responsibility she takes seriously.
“I have a vantage point where I can see the entire field, so I try to be the quarterback, managing what’s in front of me and keeping the ball out of the net,” Rosen said. “I remind myself, ‘Save the ball no matter what.’ ”
Her coach, Sarah Cummings, says Rosen is a valuable member of the team, not only because she’s a great goalie, but she also possesses special leadership qualities.
“Zoe always goes the extra mile to make her and our team get to the next level,” Cummings said. “She’s organized offseason training sessions, stays after practice to take shots and sacrifices weekends to play in tournaments. Zoe is a great role model because she truly loves the game, and it absolutely shows on the pitch.”
Rosen’s position requires her to be mentally and physically focused, which often leaves her in a state of exhaustion due to the weight of her equipment, which is compounded by the heat and humidity of early fall days. However, a lack of energy has never bothered Rosen, even off the field, when her schedule is jam-packed with schoolwork and extracurricular activities.
“My grade-point average is 3.6, and I’ve been able to earn those grades by finding opportunities to get my homework done whenever I could,” she said. “It might be during the two-hour drive to games and practice for my club team in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, on an airplane or in a hotel room when I visited colleges, on the sidelines in between games or during my free time.”
The bottom line is Rosen has managed her time wisely, and the effort has paid off. She was recently inducted into Monroe’s National Honor Society chapter, is co-founder of the township recreation field hockey program and is a volunteer goalkeeping coach for the New Jersey Spartans club field hockey team. Rosen also squeezes in time to play in an adult field hockey league at Columbia University with the New York Islanders.
Among her school activities is singing in the women’s chorale group.
It’s clear Rosen has capitalized on her earnest work ethic, but she understands a solid family and coaching support structure have also been behind her success. Her parents, Marc and Marisa, and brother, Kory, were her personal chauffeurs when she visited colleges before committing to Fairfield, and the back and forth trips to Pottstown and various camps and clinics across the country.
“We stopped at so many Wawas, I’m sure they think of me as one of their best customers,” she said.
Rosen’s proudest moment was June 7 when she achieved, in her words, “the trifecta.”
“I turned 17 that day,” she said. “I passed my road test, and I made a verbal commitment to Fairfield. It was very memorable.”
Rosen hopes to experience many more of those moments.