Central Bucks East field hockey captured a share of its fourth consecutive SOL Continental Conference title.
A pair of scarecrows – not coincidentally resembling Central Bucks East athletic director John Reading and athletic trainer Dwight Stansbury - greets everyone entering Patriot Stadium.
Created after a practice one day, the scarecrows are the handiwork of the Central Bucks East field hockey team. The original intent was to enter .jpg)
the annual Scarecrow Festival at Peddler’s Village, but they missed the deadline. That, however, did not deter them.
“We made them after practice – it’s definitely fun,” senior Elizabeth Philipp said.
“We ran like two-and-a-half miles and then made scarecrows,” junior Emily Bullard said with a laugh.
“We had pizza, it was fun,” senior Allison Gallant said.
Fun is a word the players use often when they talk about a season that saw their Patriot squad win a share of their fourth consecutive SOL Continental Division crown. They laugh when they recall their annual Olympic Day – a competition between grades - held during the preseason. This year it was two days with the juniors edging the seniors.
“We get teams, we’re a country, we dress up, we have relay races, just a bunch of events, and it just brings us together,” Philipp said.
“The juniors won in points, but in spirit, the seniors won,” Bullard said.
With Olympic Day behind them, the players are counting the days to Halloween.
“It’s definitely the best day because we get to dress up,” Philipp said. “It brings out the competitive side.”
The day includes a costume contest, relay races and kickball.
If it sounds as though the players might be too busy having fun to take hockey all that seriously, guess again. There are high expectations for this program, and the Patriots invariably achieve them.
“I’m not going to lie – I had very high expectations of this team,” coach Meghann Spratt said. “I knew what I lost, but I knew what I had coming in.
“I put up our goals from spring practices until right now – I want districts, I want states and I want an SOL championship, and I know this group is capable. We have these boxes we check off in the locker room, and we slowly check boxes off as a team without the coach there – it’s their deal, I feel it unifies them and keeps them focused.”
This year’s senior class has been part of four championship squads.
“It was a great feeling to just be a part of the first year of being successful,” Philipp said. “That’s all we’ve ever known, and we just wanted to live up to that.”
The Patriots ran into a speed bump midway through this season when they fell in overtime 1-0 to Souderton.
“That really got to all of us,” Bullard said.
“We were just all really frustrated because we thought we were definitely going to get it and then we didn’t,” Gallant said. “That drove us the entire season. We’ve been using that.”
“Playing them a second time, we went in it to win it,” Philipp said. “We wanted it so much more.”
The Patriots exacted a degree of revenge, earning a 2-0 win and capturing a share of the conference crown. It was the only game the Indians were shut out during the regular season.
“We went in confident but not cocky because we really wanted it, and we wanted to make sure they knew we wanted it,” said Bullard, who anchors the defense in goal. “Shutting them out and scoring two goals was very important.”
The Patriots’ success doesn’t just happen. There’s a commitment on all grade levels.
“In our spring practices, we’re basically just running,” Bullard said. “More than half the team is there because they know they want to improve for next season even if there’s not a stick and ball at every practice. Everyone is pushing themselves to be better in the offseason.”
Philipp points to the coaching staff as another key.
“Our coaches are a positive impact on us – we always feel we have a place to go,” the senior captain said. “They literally never tear us down. We hear positive feedback all the time.”
“They’re always encouraging us,” Gallant said.
Intentional steps are taken to include everyone from freshmen to upperclassmen who are not seeing as much playing time.
Spratt points to her seven seniors – Philipp, Gallant, Emma Donnelly, Grace Melloy, Marlee Monzon, Juliana Mignon and Ana Bassler - as significant.
“I have a strong senior class,” the Patriots coach said. “I rely on them. I have high expectations, and I expect them to reach them because they are capable.
“I had a big conversation with my girls this week. I said, ‘Are all of you starters? Nope. Do I have a large squad? Yes, but my non-starters – you .jpg)
are what’s making us better. We go against you at practice. You are what’s making us better, so credit yourself. You’re not a starter at CB East, but I guarantee you’d be a starter at a lot of other high schools. For you being a non-starter and giving us this much fight and challenge on a day-to-day basis, we have to credit our wins to our non-starters.’”
Ask the players what makes their team unique, and they have a ready reply.
“Our incredible bond,” Gallant said. “We’re all friends, there’s no tension.”
“We’re definitely a family,” Philipp said.
“We’re very supportive of each other, and I think that’s super important,” added Bullard.
The reality that they are coming down the home stretch of their high school careers is hitting home for the seniors.
“It’s insane – I’ve never wanted it more than this year,” said Philipp, who will continue her hockey career at the University of California Berkeley.
“This is my last year of playing,” Gallant said. “I’m not playing in college, so any game could be my last game. We need to make it to states.”
“I don’t think I’ve had a better group of seniors,” Bullard said. “The energy here is just incredible. I want to win states for them.”
One win separates the Patriots from a berth in the state tournament.
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