On Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, North Penn seniors Eleni Kountroubis & Megan Albert were recognized for committing to compete in field hockey at the collegiate level. (Photos provided courtesy of North Penn High School/NPTV).
Megan Albert – Sacred Heart University (Field Hockey)
Major: Marketing or Strategic Communications & Public Relations
Final list of colleges: Sacred Heart, Monmouth, Rowan, Wagner College
Reasons for choosing Sacred Heart: “I chose Sacred Heart for multiple reasons. The coaching philosophy was something I really admired. They don’t just want to improve you athletically but also academically and as a person. The campus is beautiful, and the program I want to study – there are a lot of internships in New York City, and Sacred Heart is only an hour away, so it will help me with my career development.
“I also chose Sacred Heart for the community feel. When my mom and I were on a visit, we walked into one of the dining halls to look around, and an administrator from the school came up and started talking to us about the school for about 10 minutes while she was on her lunch break. I thought it was really nice that she was able to take time out of her day to talk to us, and I’m sure there’s a lot of other people like that at the school.”
Favorite field hockey memory: “The bus rides were really fun, although I’m not sure if coach McCracken appreciates our singing all the time. Also, just a lot of other off-field memories. We always talk 15 minutes before each practice and spend a lot of time just building our bonds.”
Most important thing gained from playing field hockey: “I think the biggest thing I’ve gained from North Penn field hockey is a second family. You have 30 other sisters when you’re on that team, and we’re all so close. We text each other all the time, we go to optional practices even when it’s 95 degrees in August. They’re the people you see on Saturday mornings when you don’t really want to be there when you’re tired from the night before. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
Coach Shannon McCracken says: “Megan is a four-year letter winner for the field hockey program and a three-year starter. She was a captain her senior year. She was a defender, and she had four career goals, one assist and 10 defensive saves. All-conference honors – she got honorable mention, first team and second team over her three years. Megan is a coach on the field. She’s a natural born leader, she’s a hard worker both in the classroom and on the field, and she’s a kid that embodies our program’s values. We’re very proud of Megan – congratulations and good luck.”
Eleni Kountroubis – Lehigh University (Field Hockey)
Major: Supply Chain Management
Final list of colleges: Lehigh, Temple, Villanova
Reasons for choosing Lehigh: “I chose Lehigh because of the culture of the team. As soon as I visited the campus, I just instantly fell in love. Their academics are unmatched, and the team was just great. I couldn’t be happier.”
Favorite field hockey memory: “Our bus rides are pretty unmatched with our cheering, and also all of our wins – our big win against CB South this year when we scored the last two seconds of the game. It was a great win, and I shared all those great memories with them. I’m really thankful for my teammates.”
Most important thing gained from playing field hockey: “Definitely my closest friends. That’s one of the biggest reasons why I started playing field hockey at North Penn in the first place. I started in eighth grade because all of my friends played, and I grew such a love of the sport because of them.”
Coach Shannon McCracken says: “Eleni is a three-year letter winner and a three-year starter for the team. This year she was a captain. She had 19 career goals and eight assists. Her junior and senior year she was second team all-conference. Eleni has a positive attitude, she works hard, she’s fast and competitive on the field, and she’s a great student-athlete. She’s a great role model to her teammates, showing how you can balance both and be successful and do well with both. We’re real proud of Eleni – congratulations and good luck.”
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