Field-Hockey
Favorite athlete: Lionel Messi
Favorite team: Flyers
Favorite memory competing in sports: Beating Central Bucks West in overtime with the game winning assist.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: My teammate once tipped the ball in by tripping, but she made it look like it was intentional.
Music on your iPod: Alternative, rap, and pop.
Future plans: I plan to go to Drexel University where I will study engineering and play field hockey.
Words to live by: “Do the right thing for the right reason.”
One goal before you turn 30: Have a job in engineering.
One thing people don’t know about me: My favorite flavor of ice cream is mint chocolate chip.
By Mary Jane Souder
Reilly Finegan was destined to play field hockey.
After all, why wouldn’t she? Her mother, Michelle (Reilly) Finegan, had played for the U.S. National Team and was a coach at the collegiate level. Surely, Reilly would be an eager student.
That, however, wasn’t the case.
“I was always very stubborn,” Reilly said. “My mom would want me to try things, and I’d be like, ‘No, I don’t want to do that.’
“For some reason, when I was little, trying new things was completely against everything I stood for. I don’t know why, but I didn’t want to try anything.”
“That is 100 percent true,” her mother said. “We got her playing hockey because we brought the whole neighborhood.
“Once all of her friends were there, she was okay with it – ‘This is all right. I still don’t like hockey, but I like hanging out with my friends.’”
A funny thing happened while Finegan was hanging out with her friends. She developed a love for the sport.
“In the beginning, it was more, ‘This is interesting,” she said. “I didn’t realize I liked it until I started making friends when I played because that was a big thing. The longer I played and the better I got, the more fun it was.”
These days Finegan is having a whole lot of fun as captain of a Patriot squad that captured the program’s first conference title since 2002 and recently clinched the program’s first state berth since 2010.
“It was probably one of the greatest feelings ever,” Finegan said after her team secured a state berth. “I honestly thought I’d never get to states for high school, especially after my freshman year, considering we had four wins. My sophomore year we didn’t even make the playoffs.”
Last year, everything changed. East became a player in the SOL Continental Conference, finishing second to champion Central Bucks West. This year, the Patriots took the next step. Their ascent to the top of the SOL coincided directly with Michelle Finegan – who coached many of the players, including her daughter, on her FSC club team - taking over the helm last year.
“My mom talked to me about it a lot because it’s definitely different for high school,” said Reilly. “I was kind of against it at first, but the more I thought about what other kind of coaches we could end up with – I didn’t want to have another unfortunate season.
“Not that my sophomore season was bad. We had opportunities. I was like, ‘Fine, you can coach. I know how you coach, and a lot of the players on my team know how you coach. It should be fine.’”
According to both mother and daughter, it’s actually been better than fine.
“It’s really, really cool,” Michelle said. “I don’t know that all mother-daughters could get through this.
“I don’t think all of my daughters and I could get through this. It’s interesting. It requires a lot of give and take because of the situation. She wants to keep her friends, and she wants that to go smoothly. I can’t interfere in that regard. I also want to be the coach. It’s one of those things where it’s a fine balance, but I think she’s mature.”
That maturity surfaced when her mother, the coach, made a decision.
“I was going to switch her position on our offensive and defensive corners, and I said, ‘Ri, you don’t care if I switch your position from here to here?’” Michelle said. “She said, ‘Mom, I trust you. Whatever you want is fine.’
“I was like – are you kidding me? That’s a kid you want to coach, but it happens to be my daughter.”
For her part, Reilly doesn’t expect or want to receive preferential treatment on a team coached by three mothers of players – Finegan, Mindy Donnelly and Meghan Mannino.
“Sometimes you feel like there’s a lot more pressure on you because you feel people are watching to make sure you’re not getting special treatment from you mom,” she said. “I’m sure Riley Donnelly and Isobel Mannino feel that way too sometimes. That’s probably the most difficult thing.
“My mom and I are definitely on the same page most of the time, so that helps. We talk about other stuff, but mostly field hockey, and that’s fine because we both like it a lot, so it’s not too much. Sometimes it is, but most of the time it balances out with everything else going on.”
And Finegan has plenty going on besides hockey. An excellent student, the East senior – whose course load has included numerous AP classes – is a member of the National Honor Society, and she received distinguished honors on the 2015 NFHCA All-Academic squad. She is a member of Heifer International and has volunteered in the afterschool Cares program at Bridge Valley Elementary School.
Finegan also helps develop aspiring young field hockey players by spending her weekends coaching or officiating in the Doylestown Athletic Association, Warrington Athletic Association or her mother’s FSC program.
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Field hockey has been part of Reilly Finegan’s life for as long as she can remember.
“If I was sick when I was in preschool, I’d go with my mom to work and hang out in her office and just go watch practices,” she said. “I found lots of ways to entertain myself, and it wasn’t all just field hockey.”
It didn’t take long before Finegan discovered that her mother had celebrity status when it came to field hockey.
“I remember my sister (Colleen) would coach us for DAA, and my mom would sometimes come and help, and that was always so cool because everyone was like, ‘Oh my god, she coaches in college,’ or ‘oh my god, she was on the US team,’ and everyone would get so excited,” the Patriots’ senior captain said. “She would tell me stories about the US team, and I would think it was so cool. I think that’s part of why I played because I was like, ‘Wow, my mom was this good, I’ve got to try it.’ I ended up liking it.”
Finegan began playing club hockey for FSC when she was nine years old.
“Once FSC started, I knew I was in it for the long run because I liked it and I had people who I liked and they liked it too, so we would hang out and play field hockey,” she said. “It was a lot of fun.”
A four-year varsity letter winner, Finegan, who earned honorable mention all-league as a junior, was elected a captain this year by her teammates. Her leadership style is understated, and she is a calming presence on the field.
“I think she deeply cares about everybody on the team and is encouraging,” coach Finegan said. “She’s empathetic. If somebody has a bad moment or if something doesn’t go right, she’s the kind of kid that will go up and say, ‘Hey, shake it off, don’t worry about it. You’ll get the next one,’ and that’s not something I tell her to do.
“I wouldn’t say she’s vocal, but she speaks up when she needs to. Reilly is an authentic person and a genuine leader. She has a strong work ethic and is dedicated and committed to the team.”
Although she doesn’t live in the spotlight, Finegan’s contributions are significant.
“She’s not the very best on the team, but boy, does she contribute everything she has,” coach Finegan said. “I would say she’s the heart of the team.”
The Patriots have followed their captain’s lead, riding a blue collar work ethic and teamwork to new heights.
Finegan has committed to continue her hockey career at Drexel University where she will major in engineering.
Not a bad outcome for a youngster intent on not trying anything new, including field hockey.
