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| Caitlin Tureski photo |
As I drove home from last night's game, I couldn't help but think about how impressive the 2024 Bulldog Field Hockey team really was. It was no accident or stroke of luck that led this team to a Final Four appearance. It was commitment, hard work and dedication.
The 2024 Bulldog Field Hockey team had lofty goals after coming up just short of deep tourney runs the past couple of seasons. This year- they would not be denied.
The key lesson we can learn from this team was that their work ethic matched their goals. Let me say that again- Their WORK ETHIC matched their GOALS. All too often, teams talk about their goals and aspirations for success but nowhere near as often does the necessary work needed to achieve those goals actually take place. This group was different. They put in the work.
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| Caitlin Tureski photo |
As the Athletic Director and as a varsity coach here I have a front row seat for the "preparation game" that take place all year long here at CHS. I see the student athletes who go "down to the turf" to put in work when nobody is watching. The kids who are there all summer. The kids who are there in the freezing cold in January, pushing snow to the side to get stick-work and shooting work in. This Field Hockey team was filled with kids who did just that- who trained when nobody was watching.
Doing what is necessary to be a champion is HARD. Winning a Davenport Championship and advancing to a Final Four is really HARD. It takes work- that challenge is even more complicated in a team sport like Field Hockey. It can't be just a player or two who needs to work- it needs to be a critical mass of the team. I regularly drive through the parking lot of the turf and almost all year long, there have been multiple Field Hockey kids out there working- kids from all grades- being GREAT TEAMMATES by committing to put the work in to achieve their goals. It is AWESOME.
Many Bulldog Field Hockey players logged long hours training, sweating and working on the turf this past year, but I will highlight two who really exemplify the lessons of hard work leading to success- Shannon Lane and Carolyn Schiavo. These two Hockomock League all-stars are our Bulldog scoring leaders, and play at a level that is beyond impressive, beyond their years (sophomore and junior) and beyond the belief of most who watch them play. They just look "different" out there. That's because they both understood after last season, that they would be called upon to be GREAT in order for their team to achieve their goals. So both of them went out and put in an enormous amount of work. They were at the turf EVERY DAY....literally. They are ALWAYS there. They set the bar incredibly high for their teammates.
Carolyn and Shannon's extra work didn't stop when the season started in August. As a fall coach whose team practices before or after Field Hockey all season long, I witnessed those two getting to practice early or staying late to get in some extra reps ALL THE TIME. Extra shooting, extra stick work, extra fitness. And the coolest thing....is that it worked. Their work ethic was catchy and inspired the entire team. Championship level teams need two key things- a group that is bought-in and leaders who work harder (or at least as hard) as everyone else. This team had those two things.
Congratulations to our Field Hockey players and coaches on an amazing season. And thank you to all of them for providing the rest of us with a great road map to success- Your work must match your goals.
Go Bulldogs!
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