Field Hockey Panthers Look Ahead

By: Ashley Campbell

Several St. Vincent Pallotti High School students and administration have proven that if you want something bad enough, you can get it. For years, Pallotti has wanted to establish a girls field hockey team, and the time finally came this year.

Field hockey has been growing in popularity throughout the country, and it was only a matter of time before a team was formed at Pallotti, a Catholic high school located in Laurel.

With the help of athletic director Steve Walker and history teacher Bethany Mazalewski, the high school put together a club field hockey team that started their season early this fall. According to Mazalewski, several girls at the school approached her in hopes of making her their coach. She then approached Walker, who seemed eager to help.

“The administration has wanted to get the program started here for a few years now because it is growing really popular, and many other Catholic schools already have the program,” Mazalewski said. “I was somewhat nervous about starting the program, but I knew that I had a core group of girls who were interested.”

Mazalewski, who played club field hockey at University of Maryland before transferring to University of South Carolina to finish her degree, previously coached varsity lacrosse at Pallotti before being asked to coach field hockey.

The beginning stages of developing the team did not come easy for Mazalewski. Because the Panthers are a club team, she did not hold tryouts.

“Since it is a club team, I did take whoever came out for the team in order to spark interest for the sport,” she said. “The first day of practice I only had eight girls show up, but through word of mouth we ended up with 16 girls by the start of school.”

The team lost all five of their games this fall, but they are still taking steps for the future. Since they are not a varsity level team, they do not compete for a league championship, but they are confident they will continue to improve in time for next season.

Even though this was the team’s first season, they already have some very talented players. Junior Gabrielle Eldrige, who also plays basketball for Pallotti, was a standout playing midfield, and sophomore Allison Abell and junior Michelle Moore were also solid for the team. Sophomore Carolyn Corea impressed Mazalewski as well with her natural ability as a goalie.

Despite the rough season, Mazalewski and her team are confident in their ability to compete at the varsity level next season.

“We will be a varsity sport next year and we should develop some really solid skills this year to help us compete in the league,” she said. “And I look forward to our chances.”