The Lady Hornets are coming off their most successful field hockey season ever, having advanced all the way to the District Two semifinals last fall.
In the wake of such a stellar campaign, third year Coach Becca Maciejewski’s expectations for the 2010 season are sky-high.
“I’m really psyched to get going,” she told TWI Sports. “It’s always exciting to begin a new season with a brand new group of players.”
Coach Maciejewski and her troops were en route to Lake Lehman on Tuesday for a “Play Day.” More than a dozen teams from the Wyoming Valley Conference and beyond were expected to be in attendance.
“It’s a nice way to start off the year,” she said. “We’ll see where we stand and get a little bit of a look as some of our competition, too.”
Honesdale will once again be competing in the WVC’s rugged Class AAA division.
According to Coach Maciejewski, there are eight teams vying for five play-off spots this fall.
“I think a realistic goal for us is to be one of those five teams,” she said. “We might not get as far as last year, but you never know...”
The Lady Hornets open their title quest by hosting an exhibition game against Montrose next Tuesday.
The WVC regular season begins Friday, September 3rd at home against former PIAA state champion Wyoming Seminary. This contest will get underway at 4:15 p.m. at the HHS Athletic Complex.
On Field Leaders
A trio of veteran players will lead the Honesdale attack in 2010.
Jana Fritz, Morgan Dux and Alicia Manzione have been named this year’s tri-captains.
Fritz is a senior who will see the vast majority of her minutes up front. Jana is a hard-nosed player who’ll direct the offense in the absence of Mary Martin, who was lost for the season with an ACL tear.
Dux is a senior who’s also headed for a new position. Morgan will anchor the Red & Black defense from her spot at sweeper.
“We have to adjust to our personnel,” Coach Maciejewski. “We have a totally different team this year, so we have to adapt.”
Manzione returns to her customary spot in the midfield. Alicia will be asked to defend some of the quickest and best offensive players in the entire WVC.
Natalie O’Reilly is slated to be in goal for the Lady Hornets this fall. A relative newcomer to the field hockey scene, O’Reilly made a name for herself this spring as a catcher on the softball team.
