Central Michigan University Athletics
Field Hockey Begins Year 2 Under Pelowski
8/22/2016 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - It's said that a team, no matter the sport, makes its greatest improvement from its first game to its second.
The same might also be said for a program moving in to its second year under a new coach.
2016 marks that sophomore season for the Central Michigan field hockey program under Molly Pelowski. The Chippewas play host to Toronto in an exhibition game on Tuesday (5 p.m.), then get it started for real with a weekend with a trip to Burlington, Vt., where they will play Vermont on Friday (2 p.m.) and La Salle (1 p.m.) on Saturday.
"I think in general we have a greater talent pool this year," Pelowski said. "We developed a lot in the spring. I'm really pleased with the overall performance and I'm really happy with our team's fitness.
"I think fitness was a big factor in our team's performance last year. We conditioned throughout the duration of the spring semester and that really put us in a good position in the summer to continue to build our base level of fitness. That's a nod to the leadership that we have on our team."
The Chippewas return a quartet of strong leaders in seniors Maude Stalars and Olivia Wagner, junior Alex Gonda, and sophomore Kayla McClure.
"They've been through the ups and downs of the program," Pelowski said of Stalars and Wagner, both of whom were starters on the Mid-American Conference championship team in 2014. "They've bought into the culture of the program and they're both very skilled. They lift the level of our program."
Gonda, who was a freshman on that '14 squad, and McClure have taken the leadership mantle and run with it, Pelowski said.
"Very proud of what they did over the summer," she said. "They trained really hard, they stayed in touch with their teammates. They're leaders on the field and off."
Two key components that Pelowski is looking to replace are leading scorer Kaysie Gregory and goalkeeper Sadie Lynn Reynolds.
Sophomore Lily Amadio, who did not play last season because of injury, is the frontrunner in the battle to start in goal.
"To her credit she's worked hard in the offseason," Pelowski said. "I enjoy coaching her because she's a student of the game, she wants to understand and she really wants to get better. She's got a huge desire."
And desire is a major part of the equation, across the board, as the Chippewas look to make strides and return to the top of the MAC.
"I had a lot of opportunities in the offseason to reflect on what I needed to do better," Pelowski said. "One thing that I really needed to emphasize to the group was being much more focused on the process and much more stringent in my accountably for standards and expectations."
"The team has come back and demonstrated that they're willing to do what it takes to put themselves in the best position to perform. Whether the athletes realize it or not, they've sent the message to me that they're ready to take our program to the next level. And I'm very excited about that."
