Cornell Players Recap Coaching at CUFH Summer Camp.

Co-written by Ann DiPastina and Katherine Stone.

Coaching at camp this year was a great opportunity.  The transition from player to coach was probably the weirdest part.  We were so used to playing throughout the summer that it felt strange to be the ones in charge.  We were no longer the ones playing, but were instead giving other kids the chance to play and have fun.  At first the thought of keeping track of a group of girls seemed daunting, but after a while coaching them came naturally.  Our first day was a little chaotic— it started with a coaches meeting where we were introduced to our new assistant coach, Gavin Featherstone, who we were all anxious to meet.  We immediately jumped into the full swing of check-in where girls swarmed into RPCC ready to start camp.  Among them were our incoming freshmen, who we quickly swarmed and bombarded with greetings.  After everybody got settled into the dorms, we were finally ready to go.  Groups were assigned to coaches and we were off to the field. 

The whole camp flew by, but there were a few moments that stood out.  One drill that we did involved practicing penalty strokes.  Gavin gave the girls an incentive by making a target in the top left corner of the goal, daring the girls to make the shot with a dollar as a reward.  Unfortunately for him, two campers were up for the challenge, leaving him two dollars poorer.  Later in the week, the forecast predicted thunder storms and rain— lots of rain.  It was unlikely that we would be going outside, so there were two options: play in the Ramin Room or watch a movie.  Naturally, many of the younger girls opted for the movie and a chance to get off their feet.  It was their lucky day... or so they thought.  It turned out that there was no rain and we would proceed with the normal schedule.  Finally, camp ended with the traditional skit competition.  One that left the whole camp laughing was Hibler's group performing the American national anthem in honor of our new assistant coach.  Some of the other skits included renditions of Carly Rae Jepsen's “Call Me Maybe”, Justin Bieber's “Boyfriend”, and a creative skit by the goalies inspired by Twitter called #goalieproblems.

All in all, we had a great time.  It was nice to see and work with our fellow teammates Alaina Skalski, Christine Hibler, Jaime Trout, Kat DiPastina, and our graduated senior Olivia Boyd, who we will miss in this upcoming season.  Also, we had the opportunity to meet and work with a senior on Ohio University's field hockey team, Laura Mastro, who blended so well with us that she felt like part of our team.  We're all excited for this fall season, and we can't wait until camp next summer! 

           

Left to Right: Ann DiPastina (so.), Olivia Boyd '11, Alaina Skalski (so.), Jaime Trout (so.), Christine Hibler (jr.), Taylor Standiford (fr.), Katherine Stone(so.), Katie Garrity (fr), Kat DiPastina (sr.), and Laura Mastro (Ohio University sr.)