Mount hockey open for business
The senior tri-captains for Mount St. Joseph field hockey (left to right): Katie Burke, Casey Pollock, Jess Mulhern (photo by Tom Utescher)
by TOM UTESCHER
At the beginning of last week it was clear that Mount St. Joseph Academy is taking a very serious approach to the 2005 field hockey season, as a throng of hopefuls reported to training camp for three-a-day workouts in the August heat. Tina Reinprecht and Lois Weber return as co-coaches for the Mount, and they have a new assistant in recent Penn graduate Kate Murphy. A product of Norwood Fontbonne Academy and Mount St. Joe’s, Murphy was a tri-captain for the 2004 team at Penn and helped lead the Quakers to their first Ivy League championship in 11 years.
This Thursday (8/25), a strong scrimmage schedule for the Magic commences with a trip to the Lehigh Valley for a tune-up against nationally-ranked powerhouse Emmaus High School. Last year the Green Hornets stung the Mount, 4-1, in the first round of the PIAA tournament, then continued on to the state championship, winning the title game over Coughlin (Wilkes Barre), 4-0.
Mount St. Joseph won the Athletic Association of Catholic Academies (AACA) last fall and came in fifth in PIAA District 1, ending up with an overall record of 23-3.
Graduation losses from last year’s team have affected the Magic more in terms of talent than numbers. Gone are All-American Sarah Reinprecht, fellow midfielder Nina Ferrier, and back Sydney Slater.
Still, the Mount remains an experienced squad which returns nine players who were starters at various times last season. Heading the list of veterans are the senior tri-captains; Katie Burke, a dependable back with a big drive, Jess Mulhern, a compact, speedy striker, and Casey Pollock, who is at home either as a striker or midfielder. Middie Jacky Beebie and striker Meg Maginnis are the other seniors who are seasoned starters.
Junior Megan Longacre returns as a back, and when the Mount plays a defensive formation that features a true sweep, she’ll fill that role.
Two sophomores are featured at striker; Katie Reinprecht, a starter from the get-go as a freshman last year, and Laura Iacovetti, who worked her way onto the first string later in the 2004 season. Goalie Kieran Sweeney, who started all season as a freshman last fall, is back in the cage, and her back-up will be her classmate Caitlin O’Donnell.
A number of other players who saw action last year are back to contend for starting spots, beginning with back Liz Roberts, a lanky senior who brings a long reach to the Magic defense. Junior Mollie Flynn can play at striker or in the midfield, while junior Megan Sabia and sophomores Carolyn Cabrey and Colleen McGowan are players who can be deployed as mids or backs.
In the initial practice sessions, the Mount coaches were impressed by several freshmen, starting with a third Reinprecht sister, Julia, a striker/midfielder out of Gwynedd Mercy Elementary. Among other ninth graders making an impression were Laura Thistle, a back from Norwood Fontbonne, and a pair of players from Blue Bell’s Epiphany of Our Lord, middie Nicole Franzen and striker Jenny Sabia (Megan’s sister).
