Young Tartans are making strides
By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
The Stuart Country Day School field hockey team hasn’t let a string of tough losses get them down.
The Tartans entered Tuesday’s Mercer County Tournament having won just twice in 12 games this season. But throughout the difficult stretch, the team has continued to stress the positive.
”It is really rewarding to just play our hearts out and win,” said junior Tori Hannah, who scored the first goal of the game in a 5-0 win over Nottingham in an MCT play-in game. “Our games have been really close. We have only lost by a couple of goals in most of them. I think we have been improving a lot. Everyone is working together really nicely and the freshmen and sophomores are improving so much. It is so nice to see and they are all working hard.”
With a roster that includes just three seniors, Stuart has found itself right in just about every game. Against Nottingham, the offense finally found the shooting touch that had been lacking. Samantha Servis scored two goals and added a pair of assists, while Hannah, Cate Donahue and Julie Maser added single tallies in the win.
”I think a lot of the games we were in the games,” said Stuart coach Missy Bruvik, whose 15th-seeded team advanced to face second-seeded Princeton on Saturday. “We played (WW-P) North to overtime. We’ve had a lot of one-goal games and two-goal games. We’re still trying to find a way to put the ball in the goal and today was a breakthrough for us in terms of finishing.
”I thought Sam had one of her best games of the year. She made great decisions on when to take the shot and when to pass. And Tori just communicates so well. That has been one of the big things. She is the one out there talking and communicating with everyone on the field. And I have really been pleased with (goalkeeper) Harlyn Bell. She has been keeping us in games when we have not scored the goals we needed.”
Hannah is one of many players who will return for the Tartans next year. With such a young roster, the team just looks to get better each time it takes the field.
”The past few years we have been building our team,” said Hannah, who plays right midfield. “I think next year is going to be one of our best years. We come out and if we do lose we come out the next game with a positive attitude and we focus on what we did wrong and we work on it the next day in practice.
”I have been working hard and I feel like I have been performing on the field the best I can. We’re all improving and trying to do the best we can.”
And while that has not always resulted in wins, it has helped the Tartans stay positive as they build for the future.
”I don’t think we’ve ever really felt like we weren’t competitive in a game,” Bruvik said.