STICKING TOGETHER: Members of the Hun School field hockey team celebrate after tallying a goal in a game earlier this season. Last Wednesday, Hun couldn’t get its offense going as the third-seeded Raiders fell 2-0 to sixth-seeded Lawrenceville in the Prep A state quarterfinal round. Hun, which lost 3-0 to Lawrenceville in a regular season contest last Saturday to move to 7-9, hosts the Peddie School on November 2 in its season finale. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Things didn’t go well for the Hun School field hockey team as it hosted rival Lawrenceville last Wednesday in the Prep A state quarterfinal round.

Unable to get into an offensive rhythm, third-seeded Hun fell 2-0 to the sixth-seeded Big Red.

“It wasn’t all that we could give, some days are better than others,” said Hun post-graduate star Sophia Clark. “We have worked hard, we have had a lot of great opportunities. It is just about putting them away really.”

With Hun down 1-0 late in the third quarter, Raider head coach Tracey Arndt called a timeout to give her players a pep talk. Hun responded by gaining possession and generating several penalty corners but ultimately couldn’t break though with a goal. Lawrenceville ended up scoring a second goal in the waning seconds of regulation to make it a 2-0 final.

“I think it was just more about just coming together, understanding positioning and stuff like that,” said Clark. “It felt a bit distant, but then towards the second half we definitely got there. When you have really great coaches who know what to say and know how to motivate you, it makes a massive difference. It helped us get our rhythm back a bit.”

Having come to Hun this summer from England, Clark has enjoyed a smooth transition.

“All the girls are so nice, it is a very welcoming and friendly environment,” said Clark, who hails from Surrey, England, just south of London. “Although I am halfway across the world, everyone makes it easy to adjust.”

Clark is looking to stay in the U.S. to play for a college program here and is adjusting well to the American brand of field hockey.

“The styles are very different for sure, I think it is a massive thing for English girls to come over to America,” said Clark. “It is such a great opportunity over here. You don’t get that kind of balance of really, really high sports and really, really high academics as much in England. America is a lot bigger than England, you have such an opportunity. The field is very different with the AstroTurf. Things are different, but I think the more types of games you can play, the better.”

Hun head coach Tracey Arndt had hoped that her squad would play better in the Prep A clash against the rival Big Red.

“As much as we prepared and did everything, we didn’t get off to a good start,” said Arndt. “I always give credit to Lisa [Ewanchyna], she knows how to coach that team. We just couldn’t get it back, it was weird.”

Reflecting on her third quarter timeout, Arndt was looking to light a fire under her players.

“You never know how they are going to respond to things but I really believe in them,” said Arndt. “I said they have got to do it for each other and for ourselves, with all of the work that we have done, ‘This is it, you can do it.’ That four minute stretch was really strong, I thought we were going to get something in. We weren’t able to get the rebounds the way that we had in the past. Kudos to their defense, everything was just a little off today.”

Hun was at a disadvantage against the Lawrenceville School without senior star Phoebe Thielmann, who has been sidelined due to injury.

“It is obviously a loss when you lose a strong player,” said Arndt, whose team lost 3-0 to Lawrenceville in a regular season contest last Saturday to move to 7-9 and hosts the Peddie School on November 2 in its season finale. “Phoebe has been out for a while and I am very proud of how the girls have responded. For example at Pingry, Phoebe was in for the first quarter. She scored a goal. That is her mindset, ‘If I can do something, I will.’ Then she didn’t play for three quarters. Pingry is very good and our girls just all stepped up. They did their job the best they could.”

Junior Abby Eastman and freshman Amanda Wolfe, among others, have stepped up.

“I have three or four girls who play three or four positions every game and that is unheard of,” said Arndt. “Abby [Eastman] is not used to playing forward. I have made her play middie and I have her play center mid. She is very athletic and very versatile. It weighs on you after a while when I just keep moving you. Amanda Wolfe is a ninth grader and I have had her literally play on every single line and now she is at defensive center mid, which is a really hard position. As a ninth grader, I give her so much credit. She stayed poised in a really hard situation.”

The arrival of Clark has added skill and flair to the squad. “Sophia has been wonderful, similar to Ana (Spanish star Ana Dios, a 2024 Hun grad), that international style of play is really nice to have,” said Arndt. “She is really mature, so I think that part is really nice. She is a great teammate, she is not trying to take it herself. Lawrenceville obviously could sense that she was good and they double teamed her. She has been able to get out of double teams by passing. We weren’t there for that next pass today.”

While Clark was disappointed by the loss to Lawrenceville, she is having a wonderful experience at her new school.

“It is an amazing school, I am so lucky that I have been able to come here,” said Clark. “The facilities are amazing, the people are amazing. I am very lucky that I have amazing teachers and coaches who really help me.”