MSU junior forward Hannah Jarvie in MSU's field hockey game against Maryland. Oct. 22, 2021.
Despite a brutal Big Ten gauntlet, Michigan State field hockey is making the most out of their season as they look to wrap up on a high note.
After starting the season on such a high with five consecutive wins, the Spartans have fallen flat in Big Ten play, dropping all of their conference games, albeit against high quality opponents with five of their seven losses coming against top ten opponents at that time.
However, this team knows they have some strides to make, and look at this season as growth versus a disappointment.
"The season has been going pretty good," senior midfielder Cara Bonshak said. "It's definitely nice to be back in the fall versus the spring. Each week we try and progressively grow as a team. Also, we're into Big Ten play right now, which is a really tough conference this year, so we're working to grind out each week."
The chemistry of the squad has hit a different level as well, watching them play makes that quite evident.
"(The season is) pretty good," senior forward Lia Sinisi said. "I think that we've definitely been building as a team and figuring out how to connect with each other."
Looking back on the last four years, Bonshak and Sinisi said they have learned a lot from being apart of this team. As seniors, the two of them have been apart of a losing season each year. But now with one game remaining, they have a chance to break that.
If they do, it'll be because of their chemistry.
“(My favorite part is) the team atmosphere and the energy that we bring for each other," Sinisi said. “We're all connected and it's more about each other than the wins and loses.”
It's easy to call yourself a family atmosphere, but that connection is different when they know these connections will last a lifetime, Bonshak said.
“This is a team of family,” Bonshak said. “We're all very close and very connected and I know that ten years from now I'll still be able to reach out to any of these girls and start up a conversation like nothing has changed. The connections we've made are definitely one of my favorite things about this team.”
It is an adjustment for the squad to come back to normalcy after an off year due to the pandemic. It still has not shaken them though, Sinsi said.
“It's a big difference from last year,” Sinisi said. “We haven't played a real season in two years. It's exciting that our families are able to come to the games and that away games are being played for both out of conference and in conference.”
The team's current record sits at 7-7 after winning all seven of their non-conference games and losing all seven of their conference games. The key for them?
Be aggressive.
“We've got to get moving, step up and be aggressive,” MSU Head Coach Helen Knull said.
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