Columbus area’s statewide success in field hockey begins at home
As the members of the Watterson field hockey team gathered up their gear after practice Aug. 18, they were alerted to a pair of regional championship trophies sitting on a nearby bench.
On a rotating basis, coach Janet Baird said, players would have the privilege of taking the trophies home.
Winning hardware – a regular practice for Watterson at the league, regional and state levels the past two years – is something Baird wants her players to savor considering the yearly obstacles in their path.
The Eagles are two-time defending state champions, but central Ohio has won seven consecutive titles and 10 of 11 overall.
“It’s a lot of pressure,” Baird said. “It’s tough in central Ohio because you have very little time to recover and prepare for those big games.”
Columbus Academy won its first title in 1994 and 11 others since under former coach Anne Horton, who retired after her 31st season last fall. She led that program to a 526-35-29 mark.
Thomas Worthington has won six state championships, including five under coach Terri Simonetti Frost. The Cardinals won three in a row from 2015-17, followed by Academy winning two before Watterson’s current run under Baird, who has led the Eagles to four of their five state championships.
“We want to build the sport, and we want the other teams to join that rivalry and that intensity in every game,” Simonetti Frost said. “I love it, but we want every game to be intense. You love your rivalries and you love the competitiveness.”
Thirty-eight schools in Ohio play field hockey, including 18 in central Ohio. Two of the four regional brackets are comprised solely of central Ohio programs.
In regional finals last fall, Thomas beat Academy 2-1 in overtime and Watterson defeated New Albany 2-1.
At state, Watterson beat Cincinnati Mount Notre Dame 3-0 and Thomas defeated Shaker Heights 1-0 in semifinals to set up a title game that wasn’t decided until Molly Griffith made a penalty shot in overtime to give the Eagles a 2-1 win.
Without Griffith and five other key players from her team, Baird isn’t sure what to expect this year.
However, she knows Upper Arlington and New Albany should join the typical trio of Academy, Thomas and Watterson among the area favorites.
Academy has a new coach in Jacque DeMarco, who led Columbus School for Girls last season.
Olentangy Liberty also has a new coach in Marianne Flannery, but she guided that program from 2012-18 with a state tournament appearance in 2016.
New Albany coach Marissa Weldon hopes her program finally can break through with its first state berth.
“We’ve reached district finals the last three years and, obviously, central Ohio is so tough to get out of,” Weldon said. “The top teams in the state have traditionally come from central Ohio, but we’ve reached the point where we’re right there and we have to get over that final hurdle.”
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Early season Super 12
Emily Barker
School: Upper Arlington
Year: Senior
The midfielder and forward had 19 goals and four assists last year, leading the Golden Bears to their first COFHL championship and a regional semifinal appearance.
Barker, who is a four-year starter, two-time all-state honoree and Super 6 selection last season, scored three or more goals five times a year ago.
Tate Beegle
School: Thomas Worthington
Year: Senior
Beegle is the Cardinals’ top returning scorer after recording 12 goals and 12 assists last year. She was first-team all-league and scored the game-winning goal in a 1-0 win over Shaker Heights in a state semifinal.
An attacker, Beegle helped the Cardinals to a 17-3-1 record and a state runner-up finish.
Sammie Callaghan
School: Upper Arlington
Year: Junior
One of four returning starters for the Bears, Callaghan played a key role as a sophomore to help UA to a 13-4-1 record and the program’s first COFHL championship.
Callaghan scored seven goals, tied for second on the team with classmate Haley Menke, and earned first-team all-COFHL-West Division honors. They again should be among the leaders as the Bears return four starters after graduating 14 players.
Cassidy Clapham
School: New Albany
Year: Senior
Clapham, a forward, scored seven goals to tie for second on the team as the Eagles went 15-3-1, the most wins in program history, and finished as a regional runner-up for the third consecutive season.
Clapham is one of seven starters back for New Albany. She had 18 goals in her first two seasons and was a defender on the girls lacrosse team’s Division I state championship in the spring.
Julie Conroy
School: Thomas Worthington
Year: Sophomore
A defensive-minded midfielder, Conroy was an important piece to Thomas’ success on defense last fall.
The Cardinals allowed 12 goals on 45 shots on goal while going 17-3-1 and reaching the state final. Conroy, who was honorable mention all-league, also had one goal and two assists.
Paige Cornelius
School: New Albany
Year: Junior
A midfielder, Cornelius helped the Eagles to a program-record 15 wins as well as a second-place finish in the COFHL-East and their third consecutive regional final.
She scored a team-leading 26 goals, was named first-team all-league and all-state as well as to the Super 6 and participated in USA Field Hockey’s U16 Selection Camp. She also qualified for the Division I state girls tennis tournament in doubles.
Lily Goodfellow
School: Watterson
Year: Senior
An honorable mention all-league honoree as the Eagles went 20-0-1 and won their second consecutive state championship, this attacker had five goals and nine assists last season.
Goodfellow, according to coach Janet Baird, is a “hustler” who was a key backup during the team’s state title run in 2020.
Ava Hurst
School: Columbus Academy
Year: Senior
A midfielder, Hurst is expected to be a key contributor for first-year coach Jacque DeMarco.
Last season, she had five goals and two assists and was honorable mention all-COFHL-East. The Vikings finished 13-5-1, losing to Thomas Worthington 2-1 in overtime in a regional final.
Lucy Keeler
School: Olentangy Liberty
Year: Senior
Keeler, a forward, had 17 goals and 12 assists last season, helping the Patriots to a 14-4-1 record.
The Kent State commit, who was first-team all-league, may play some midfield this season because of her versatility, according to coach Marianne Flannery.
Avelinn O’Reilly
School: Watterson
Year: Senior
O’Reilly, an attacker, is the leading returning scorer for the two-time defending state-champion Eagles after finishing with 10 goals and five assists last season.
Her speed, combined with being what coach Janet Baird calls the team’s “toughest player,” has her poised to be one of Watterson’s top contributors this fall.
Parker Parker
School: Olentangy
Year: Senior
Parker, a forward, led Olentangy with 10 goals and added four assists last fall, helping the Braves to a 14-4 record, which set the program record for wins for the third consecutive season.
A Merrimack commit, Parker “may be the hardest-working player on the team,” according to coach Biz Brehm.
Reagan Richeson
School: Olentangy
Year: Senior
Richeson is “the center of the team” because she sets the tone, according to Brehm, which is fitting for the midfielder.
She had eight goals and 12 assists last season, leading the Braves in the latter, on her way to first-team all-league honors.
Early season Super 7
1. Thomas Worthington – The Cardinals graduated 10 players after going 17-3-1 and being state runners-up. But Thomas still is strong, led by seniors Tate Beegle (12 goals, 12 assists) and Campbell Bowers and a core of talented, younger players in junior Lauren Beier (10 goals, 3 assists), sophomores Julie Conroy and Emmy Wellejus and freshmen Sophia Borghese and Jaidyn Gussler.
2. New Albany – Seven returning starters, including junior midfielder and all-state honoree Paige Cornelius (26 goals), give the Eagles hope of reaching their first state tournament. They have won 43 games the past three seasons but have yet to advance past the regional final. Defender Abigail Chattos and goalie Noa Kauffman, both seniors, return to anchor a back line that allowed only seven goals in 2021.
3. Upper Arlington – Coming off the program’s first league championship, the Golden Bears return their top scorer in Ohio State commit Emily Barker (19 goals, 4 assists) among four starters. There will be some reloading after graduating 14 players, but coach Sara Greaves is confident the Bears will contend for their second state tournament appearance and first since 1990.
4. Watterson – The Eagles lost a strong senior class after winning their second consecutive state championship and finishing 20-0-1 last fall. Watterson returns a trio of senior attackers in Lily Goodfellow, Avelinn O’Reilly and Sophia Schultheis and senior goalie Kenzi Jones as it looks to reach the state tournament for the 13th time.
5. Olentangy – Half of Olentangy’s 18 players are seniors, led by midfielder Reagan Richeson (8 goals, 12 assists), attacker Parker Parker (10 goals, 4 assists) and midfielder/defender Georgia Dudon. The Braves went 14-4 last season to break their program record for wins for the third consecutive season. Olentangy fell to New Albany in a regional semifinal.
6. Columbus Academy – The Vikings have a new coach as Jacque DeMarco has replaced Anne Horton, who retired after 31 seasons. They reached a regional final last season, losing to Thomas Worthington 2-1 in overtime to finish 13-5-1. Academy should be led by senior midfielder Ava Hurst.
7. Olentangy Liberty – The Patriots, who went 14-4-1 last season, return seniors Lucy Keeler (17 goals, 12 assists), Sydney Frantz (6 goals, 9 assists), Ella Mohler (4 goals, 5 assists) and Makena Harrington (1 goal, 7 assists) and both goalies in senior Annie Lorenz (46 saves) and junior Alayna Bogner (36 saves). The goalies didn’t give up a goal until the eighth game last year and allowed only 13.
BEXLEY
•Coach: Kara Whitlatch, 20th season
•Top players: Ella Gertmenian, Evie Holzhall, Maddy Krasnow, Bea Meeks, Isabelle Stukey, Wren Ruckel, Joey Zehnal and Frankie Zehnal
•Key losses: Lainey Dorrian, Lillian Gyurcsik and Sally Sauer
•Last season: 7-10 overall
•2021 COFHL-East standings: Watterson (8-0), New Albany (7-1), Columbus Academy (6-2), Worthington Kilbourne (5-3), Bexley and Granville (both 3-5), Columbus School for Girls and Hartley (both 2-6), Lancaster (0-8)
•2021 postseason: Lost to Granville 1-0 in first round of regional tournament
•Outlook: The Lions have 10 seniors to lead the way, including returning starters in midfielder Bea Meeks (honorable mention all-league), defender Evie Holzhall (second-team all-league; 2 goals, 2 assists) and midfielder Maddy Krasnow (Wittenberg recruit; 2 goals, 5 assists). Sophomore Ella Gertmenian also will contribute in the midfield.
Junior sisters Joey Zehnal and Frankie Zehnal (team-high 8 goals, 1 assist) and sophomore Wren Ruckel (1 goal, 1 assist) expect to be the top forwards. Junior defender Isabelle Stukey is a returning starter, and senior Lanie Fleischer takes over in goal.
•Quotable: “We have a pretty strong midfield with a lot of experience there. Bea and Maddy are starting their fourth season. We haven’t been scoring as much as I would like. The midfield is getting the ball up there. We just have to score when we’re close to the cage.” — Whitlatch
CSG
•Coach: Brittany Burga, first season
•Top players: Sarah Alexander, Jacey Cassandra, Kayla Kirby, C.C. McLarty and Summer Williams
•Key losses: Cynthia Alexander, Grace Edic, Sarah Lonser, Gia Noel Manokas and Elizabeth Schrim
•Last season: 6-10 overall
•2021 postseason: Lost to Olentangy Orange 1-0 (OT) in second round of regional tournament
•Outlook: The Unicorns have their third coach in three years as Brittany Burga, a first-time head coach, takes over after Jacque DeMarco left after one season to coach Columbus Academy. The 2009 Liberty graduate was an assistant at her alma mater.
Seniors Jacey Cassandra (midfielder/attacker; second-team all-league), Kayla Kirby (goalie) and C.C. McLarty (defender) return, as do juniors Sarah Alexander (midfielder; honorable mention all-league) and Summer Williams (defender/midfielder). Sophomore Bridget Donnelly (midfielder/attacker) joins the program after being a standout in lacrosse last spring.
•Quotable: “We have 18 players and will only have a varsity team. We have a bunch of young, new and raw talent and we also have some really seasoned players who could play collegiately if they wanted to.” — Burga
—Scott Hennen
This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Columbus area’s statewide success in field hockey begins at home
