Rowan field hockey planning extended stay at Final Four
GLASSBORO — The pile kept getting bigger on the sidewalk in front of the John Green Team House.
Every time an SUV door opened, more gym bags, tote bags and backpacks kept piling up. Someone was either moving into a new dorm or planning an extended trip.
That’s when the field hockey sticks came out.
The Profs are planning an extended trip to Hartford, Conn. for this weekend’s 2021 NCAA Division 3 Field Hockey Final Four. Rowan will play Saturday at 11 a.m. against top-ranked Middlebury in a national semifinal with a spot in Sunday’s title game on the line.
“We’re definitely packing for a long weekend,” sophomore goalie Abby Hainesworth said. “We are hoping for the best, packing for the best. I think that we can do it if we really push ourselves and work hard.”
It’s that attitude, that has propelled the Profs to 16 consecutive wins, a spot in the Final Four, and possibly a shot at avenging a September loss to Johns Hopkins. The Blue Jays face Trinity in the other National semifinal on Saturday.
Attitude is a familiar quality on a roster made up of a dozen South Jersey players, 10 more from Central and North Jersey, plus four of the seven out-of-state players who grew up in the Delaware Valley.
That recruiting focus is very intentional.
“It's funny because I am a home grown kid from Pennsauken,” coach Michelle Andre said. “I know how all South Jersey kids are. Anywhere I've ever been, you always want to build in your backyard. This program has always been built on a backbone of Jersey kids, for as long as I can remember. They've just got a lot of grit. New Jersey in general, and even the surrounding region is primed for really great hockey.”
Senior Kristiina Castagnola has become one of the best players in the country. An Eastern High School grad, she started her career at Penn State before settling in at Rowan. It’s been a perfect fit.
“I actually transferred here because I wanted to be closer to home,” Castagnola said. “I just knew this was like an elite spot like for Division 3 hockey. It was right in my backyard. I couldn't help but notice that this place was up and coming and about to do something really great. That's what happened. Once I transferred in 2018, we made that first run all the way to the Final Four. And it just hasn't stopped since.”
Hainesworth, a Williamstown High School graduate, has backstopped a defense that has allowed just 19 goals in 20 games, playing against some of the best competition Division 3 has to offer. At some point it became clear that the Profs didn’t just belong among the best, they were more than that.
“I wouldn't say there was a specific moment, but I do remember, there was a point in time in the locker room, Michelle (Andre) said we have a really special group here and we can really go far. I know I really felt inspired by that. When I realized we have a very successful team with a lot of great teammates, we can really push ourselves and get as far as we got this year.”
And for years to come.
There are seven seniors on the roster and 15 freshmen. That’s one more than half the 29 players. Freshman Julia Patrone has battled with Castagnola and fellow senior Eastern grad Krystyna Hovel, for the Profs’ scoring lead.
Patrone didn’t play right away after graduating from Washington Township. She’s a couple of years older than the rest of her freshmen classmates. That makes her something of the mother hen.
“It has been pretty nice,” Patrone said. “I'm 21. So, I'm a lot older than a lot of the freshmen. It's cool especially because this is new to me, too. It's hard for me sometimes, as well. But it's good. It's easy to like get into it with these girls.”
Disruptions due to the pandemic made building a young roster part of the overall design. It also made it a necessity.
“My seniors graduating took an extra semester but I also knew what this year was going to look like,” Andre said. “I stayed the course of recruiting the way I did so we got what we wanted. I knew I was going to carry a bit of a larger roster this year, which I was okay with. I just didn't know how things were "They're a very talented freshman class. My upperclassmen have been great leaders and role models for them. They're just going to carry it on.”
Tom Rimback, sports reporter
Tom Rimback grew up reading the Burlington County Times and Courier Post sports sections and began writing for the BCT in 1996. He has covered everything from Super Bowls and Final Fours to Tri-County Swimming but he’s happiest on a sideline interviewing South Jersey scholastic athletes for the Burlington County Times, the Courier Post and The Daily Journal. Follow him on twitter @RimbackBCT. Email him with story ideas at trimback@thebct.com and, most importantly, support local journalism with a subscription.
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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Rowan field hockey in Final Four form
