(Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) SMASH HIT: Stuart Country Day junior Sarah Schulte hits the ball down the field in recent action. Schulte’s play in the midfield has helped the Tartans win eight games in a row and earn the third seed in both the state Prep A tourney and the Mercer County Tournament. In upcoming action, Stuart, now 13-4 is slated to host No. 6 Blair on October 23 in the opening round of the Prep tournament and then host 14th-seeded Ewing on October 25 in the MCT quarterfinals.

With Schulte Standing Tall in Midfield, Stuart Field Hockey Primed for Postseason

Bill Alden

With the Stuart Country Day field hockey coming into the season needing to build a defense decimated by graduation, Sarah Schulte was happy to move to the back line.

The tall and athletic junior played well in the early going at center half, shoring up the defense as it found its way.

But when the Stuart offense sputtered in late September, Schulte was moved up to a wing position to utilize her ball skills and savvy.

The shift of Schulte to midfield helped trigger a hot streak that has seen the Tartans win eight straight games, the most recent victory coming with a 6-0 whipping of Pennington last Thursday.

As she basked in the afterglow of the win over Pennington, Schulte said she is enjoying her chance to be a two-way contributor for the Tartans.

“I do a little bit of defense and a little bit of offense,” said Schulte.

“I like being the connector. I work with Diamond [Lewis] in the back and then Caroline [Passano] in the front. we do some nice give and goes.”

In Schulte’s view, Stuart’s performance against Pennington showed that it is rolling with tournament time around the corner.

“We got a chance to work on our skills today; this demonstrated that we are ready for the postseason,” asserted Schulte, reflecting on a win which moved Stuart to 13-4 on the season.

“We are really playing like a team. It is so much fun to play with everyone; the passes are amazing. We really know where everyone is going to be and we trust them; I think this game definitely showed that.”

Stuart’s mini-slump in the middle of the season which saw it lose two out of three games, scoring two goals in that stretch, may have turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Tartans.

“We started out strong in the season and then we lost a couple of games,” recalled Schulte.

“I think that helped us grow as a team; we have definitely learned from our mistakes. Our growth is definitely showing because we are coming out strong against really good teams and playing well.”

Stuart head coach Katie Grant likes the way Schulte has grown into her role on the team.

“I had her initially in the center and she did great there but she is just such a smart passer,” said Grant.

“I think being on the right side gives her the ability to use the give and goes on the sideline. It also gave her the chance to be a little bit more attacking which is good because she is smart with the ball and has a really great shot so she gets opportunities to shoot it and send the ball across the circle. It gives her less space to worry about which is good for her.”

The move of Schulte to midfield also helped Stuart in another respect as it opened the way for junior Courtney Alexander to thrive at center half.

“I put Courtney in the middle where Sarah was and she has been doing great,” explained Grant.

“She stepped up; she’s really been a really big presence. It was cool because she hadn’t got that chance to step up and play a big role. I think she took it on great like she wanted to do it. She’s holding the middle, she’s a good defender; she’s persistent. Her tackles are getting better and she’s starting to see the passing more. She’s learning and getting better every game.”

With tournament play starting this week, Grant wants her team to collectively get better and better.

“I think they need to continue what they are doing but also progressing,” said Grant, whose team is seeded third in both the state Prep A tourney and Mercer County Tournament.

“That’s going to require working together as a team; being supportive on and off the field. We need to come out and set the pace and make the game about us.”

Grant believes her team is up to the challenge of having a bull’s eye on its back.

“I think it’s anybody’s game and we need to understand that going into these tournaments,” added Grant, whose club is slated to host sixth-seeded Blair on October 23 in the opening round of the Prep tournament and then host No. 14 Ewing on October 25 in the MCT quarterfinals.

“We are the defending champs; the other teams know that and they are going to play that much harder. I think the girls understand that; I think they want it. The biggest thing is that we come out every game and we continue to pass and move that ball and take good shots. The results will come.”

Schulte, for her part, believes Stuart will produce results in line with the program’s winning tradition.

“We definitely need to play like we have been playing, really working together,” said Schulte.

“We have a lot to lose because we have been winning in the past. We have also lost to a couple of teams like Lawrenceville and Robbinsville that we might be seeing later in the tournaments. We do feel the pressure to perform and win and get all the way to the finals.”

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