Q&A with Mamaroneck HS field hockey team members
MAMARONECK, N.Y. — The Mamaroneck field hockey (MFH) team is once again entering the playoff season ranked as a top team in Section 1. This was a year of transition without 26-year head coach, John Savage, so we wanted to check in with the captains to find out more about how this team remains so powerful. Below is our Q&A with Lizzie Astorina, Lily Margoshes, Sydney McMullen and Carlie Spano.
The team has proven to handle the transition without Coach Savage successfully this season. How have you done that?
MFH: Coach Miller has been our JV head coach and Varsity assistant coach for our entire time in the program, so there wasn’t much adjusting that had to be done. Miller has completely held us to all the same expectations, rigor, and traditions that were implemented when Sav was here. We also keep in constant touch with Sav through text and LocalLive!
What are some of the team traditions that you can share with us?
MFH: Late-season is an especially fun time of year for traditions! In sectionals, we have a series of themed dinners before every game. We do a fancy dinner, where we wear dresses and heels. We also have a Halloween dinner, where we all dress up in wacky costumes. We are a very tradition-heavy team, from the dinner themes and the warmup playlist down to the number of balloons we buy for playoffs.
What is your favorite memory as a MHS field hockey player?
MFH: Definitely going to States last year. Growing up in the program, you constantly hear stories from past teams going to States: happy ones, sad ones, crazy ones (like the team’s bus freezing shut in Buffalo). So, when we actually got to go, it felt unreal. In the middle of the semifinal game, a massive storm passed through, and we were paused for two hours due to a tornado warning. It was one of those crazy States stories that I know will go down in the program’s history.
What did the team do in the offseason to prepare?
MFH: Practicing year-round as a team is crucial to keeping up in our area. Most of us play on various club teams in the winter, but we do a lot as a varsity team too. Over the summer, we do senior-led conditioning twice a week and host half-field scrimmages against neighboring teams once a week. In the winter, we do team workouts and indoor hockey sessions on the gym floor.
How old were you guys when you first started playing?
MFH: The interesting thing about field hockey in Mamaroneck is that there’s no local youth league, unlike soccer, lacrosse, and most other popular sports in the area. Due to that, our varsity program takes on the role of educating and involving the local youth in field hockey. When we were kids, we all did the clinics provided by Mamaroneck Field Hockey but never played real field hockey until 7th grade, when modified started. Now that we’re the varsity girls, we work the clinics for the younger girls. Giving back to the program that got us all involved in the sport has been an especially rewarding experience.
What will you miss the most when the season ends?
MFH: Most teams preach it, but very few have the bond that Mamaroneck Field Hockey does. Our coaches have created a truly family-like atmosphere, and when you come in as a freshman it just completely absorbs you. We spend late nights and early mornings, summers and winters, school lunches and weekends together. Because of that, we’ll miss our teammates more than anything.
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