Redbird field hockey team hit hard by graduation

Last season was a memorable one for Allentown High School junior varsity field hockey coach and assistant varsity coach Dana Thompson. She worked with head coach Mary Ellen McCarthy in guiding the Redbirds to the Mercer County Tournament championship.

Although McCarthy said some extensive rebuilding is in store for this season, Thompson knows that some more special moments are assured this fall.

Thompson, a member of Allentown’s 1997 NJSIAA Group III state championship team, will join her former teammates when that squad is inducted into the school’s second athletic Hall of Fame induction in mid- October.

For now, Thompson is focusing with McCarthy and returning freshman coach Beth Corson on rebuilding a team that graduated 13 seniors from last year’s 16-3 squad that rallied from a 2-0 deficit to beat Robbinsville, 3-2, for the county tournament title. The team lost in the second round of the NJSIAA Group III tournament to Northern Burlington.

Not only is the team new, it is expected to be young, with the bulk of the roster made up of sophomores.

“We have some seniors and juniors back who have been doing things,” said Mc- Carthy. “We’ll see what we have when practices start.”

Practices began Monday, Aug. 16, and many worked to get ready by playing in the seven-on-seven summer league at Allentown High School on Tuesdays. One of Allentown’s two teams that were entered won the league. Players also had workout practices and lifted in the weight room.

But with the season rapidly approaching — beginning with a Sept. 11 opener at home at 11 a.m. against Notre Dame and scrimmages that include matches with New Egypt and Bordentown — Allentown has some gaping holes to fill in the starting lineup, especially on defense.

Untested goalies up from the underclassman teams will replace graduated netminder Nikki Barbaree. Defender Janice Dutko is off to a college career at Richard Stockton College while back line mates Sam Scabilia and Sam O’Brien also are graduated. Midfielder Paige Weatherbee is at perennial conference and national contender The College of New Jersey.

“We have forwards returning and players who can be made into forwards, but we lost much of the back line on defense, which is tough,” said McCarthy, who builds teams from the defensive end. “There will be teaching, demonstrating and explanations in the process.”

Captains will be named as practices continue, said Thompson, who expects to get a better idea of where her younger players fit in over the next few weeks.