Youthful field hockey program excited for future

---

Tweet

Despite its first losing season since 2006, the MSU field hockey team gained much from a disappointing fall.

After posting a 7-12 regular season record (1-5 Big Ten), a strong showing in the conference tournament was MSU’s last chance to continue its season. But the Spartans’ season came to an end with a 2-1 loss against No. 15 Ohio State in the Big Ten tournament.

Although their season ended prematurely, the Spartans and first-year coach Helen Knull learned much from their experiences this fall.

“I think if you look at our record, it won’t really show the wins that every team wants. But I can tell you firsthand that I’ve been a part of two winning seasons, and I’ve never learned more than in this one,” sophomore goaltender Molly Cassidy said. “We have a lot to learn from, and we learned on the go, But we’re still going to improve during the spring.”

Knull also learned quite a bit during her first year at the helm. She said above all she had to learn about patience, understanding you can’t expect things to change overnight and knowing that sometimes you have to wait for things to come together.

Knull’s patience was tested at the beginning of the season when the Spartans came out of the gates slowly and found themselves in a 0-4 hole. However, patience paid off, as the team won four out of its next five games, climbing to a 4-5 record entering Big Ten play.

During a season in which more than a third of the Spartans were freshmen, it was difficult for MSU to find a rhythm. However, with such a young team, the Spartans have a solid foundation to build on for coming years.

“In a couple years, we’re going to be a great team,” junior midfielder Adelle Lever said. “It’s the lack of experience that kind of hurt us this year, but through the spring and into the next fall season, we’ll be showing a lot of improvement.”

Two Spartans, Lever and freshman forward Abby Barker both earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors. Barker led the team in goals with nine and points with 19, while Lever helped balance the offensive attack with strong defense, recording two goals and an assist to go along with her four defensive saves.

Cassidy also had a stellar season, racking up 150 saves and a .754 save percentage while starting every game in the net. She earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors twice and also was named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team.

The Spartans already are looking ahead to next season, when they will have 19 returning players, including four starters.

“I’m really excited with where we’re going in the future,” Knull said. “With so many kids returning this year, we’ve got four girls coming in next fall. Molly (Maloney) and Shawn (Hindy) are still on board as staff. I’m looking forward to the future of Michigan State field hockey.”

Although Knull was hesitant to predict what will happen next fall, at least one player has high expectations for her team.

“(Next season) I actually see us winning the Big Ten,” Lever said. “If spring goes well and everyone works just as hard as they have been, all the talent’s going to come together, and we can win the Big Ten.”

---