Field Hockey

Team Updates

Field hockey camp offered

Former Woodstock Academy field hockey standout Mikayla Jones “jokingly” sent her former high school coach, Lauren Gagnon, a tweet recently.

It was about Katie O’Donnell Bam’s field hockey camps and clinics.

The tweet instructed those who read it and were interested to email the two-time U.S. Olympic field hockey player.

Gagnon thought she had no chance to get the Olympian to come to Woodstock, but she couldn’t resist giving it a try.

“I was like ‘what the heck,’ so I emailed her and a couple of days later, I got an email back saying if I was interested in setting up a camp, she was absolutely interested. I’ve been working hard ever since to bring this opportunity to these kids,” Gagnon said.

The camp will take place from 9 a.m. –noon and 2 p.m. – 5 p.m. on June 9 and 10 at The Woodstock Academy South Campus turf field.

In addition to Katie, her husband, Marvin, a South African field hockey Olympian, will be on hand as will a third former Olympian to work with local field hockey athletes.

“We will probably have a maximum of about 20 kids so it will be a great coach-to-player ratio. It’s a 12-hour weekend of field hockey with a lot of time on the field and some really great individualized attention,” Gagnon said.

Gagnon is hopeful that a good number of her current Centaur field hockey team will take part, but there will be enough space for those outside of the Woodstock Academy field hockey program to take part if interested.

Male and female players are invited.

“It’s definitely not for a beginning player, it’s 13-and-up,” Gagnon said.

It’s also a little “pricey” according to Gagnon.

The cost to attend is $310.

“We are offering fundraising opportunities,” Gagnon said.

Whomever signs up will be invited to take part in two “Dining for a cause” events. One will be held at the 99 Restaurant in Dayville and the other at the Courthouse Bar and Grille in Putnam. There is also a car wash planned for Sunday, May 20^th at the Garden Gate Florists.

Funds that are raised will be divided among those who help out and are going to take part in the camp. There is also a cheesecake auction currently going on.

For more information and to sign up for the Katie O’Donnell Bam K16 camp, go to www.katieodonnellfh.com/woodstock-ct-camp.

To read more of this story, go to Centaur Nation.

8 field hockey players honored

Eight Woodstock Academy field hockey players have been named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association 2017 High School National Academic squad.

Julia Bibeault, Kate Boshka, Natalie Crose, Mackenzie Eaton, Casidhe Hoyt, Lindsey O’Dea, Charlotte Powell, Hannah Wotton were so honored. Eaton and Powell received Scholar of Distinction honors.

The High School National Academic Squad program recognizes those high school seniors and juniors who have achieved a minimum cumulative, unweighted GPA of 3.50 out of 4.0 or the equivalent through the first quarter of the 2017-18 school year.

Centaurs fall in Hamden

The season came to an end for the 10th-seeded Centaurs with a 6-0 loss to No. 7 Sacred Heart Academy in a Class M first-round state tournament game.

"Overall it was a great season," Woodstock Academy coach Lauren Gagnon said. "The girls accomplished everything we had set out to at the beginning of the season: To make ther (Eastern Connecticut Conference) and state tournaments and state tournaments and to give back to the community."

The ECC tournament appearance was a first for the Centaurs (7-10-1) who also posted the best regular season record (7-8-1) in program history.

"(Assistant coach) Ann (Rathbone) and I couldn't be prouder of their effort and enthusiasm this season. We look to carry that into the offseaason with some indoor play and come back even better next year," Gagnon said.

Short stay, positive results

The stay in the Eastern Connecticut Conference field hockey tournament was a short, but rewarding, one for the Centaurs.

The Academy, the fourth seed, lost to No. 1 Stonington on Wednesday night, 5-1, in a semifinal contest.

“I couldn’t have been more proud of the fight we put up (Wednesday),” coach Lauren Gagnon said.

Haley Armstrong scored her sixth goal of the season in the first half for the Centaurs who shocked many in attendance when they were tied with the Bears (14-3) at halftime.

“We dominated almost the entire first half,” Gagnon said.We knew we had the ability and the desire to play with them and made them work until the buzzer.”

But the Bears scored in the first minute of the second half and momentum quickly shifted in the home team’s favor.

Hannah Reynolds and Wanjiru Gatheru were named ECC Honorable Mention All-Stars. Julia Bibeault was selected as the Centaurs' sportsmanship award recepient and Charlotte Powell is the Centaurs' scholar-athlete.

On Tuesday, the Centaurs finished the regular season with their best record in program history, 7-8-1, after a scoreless tie with Suffield.

The Academy now heads into state tournament play with Gagnon confident of one key aspect of her team.

“We will not be outhustled. That’s a lesson we learned the hard way earlier this season and it’s one we don’t want to learn again. We play with 100 percent effort, 100 percent of the time,” Gagnon said.

Centaurs qualify for ECC and state tournaments

The Woodstock Academy field hockey team made a little history on Saturday.

For the first time, the Centaurs qualified for the Eastern Connecticut Conference tournament.

The Academy qualified when Waterford defeated Fitch/Ledyard 1-0. That eliminated the possibility of a three-way tie for third and fourth between the Centaurs, Lancers and Falcons. The Centaurs would have been the odd team out in that scenario.

Instead, The Academy is the No. 4 seed and will play a tournament semifinal game at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday at top-seeded Stonington.

“It’s a dream come true for these seniors,” said coach Lauren Gagnon. “They have been working their tails off for four years and to go out on a high note is something they deserve and have earned.”

The Bears (13-3, 12-0 ECC) have beaten The Academy in both their meetings this season, 4-1 at the Bentley Athletic Complex and 5-1 in Stonington.

The Centaurs (7-8, 6-6) reached another goal on Saturday.

Their 3-1 win over Stafford on Senior Day assured them a berth in the Class M state tournament.

“We play a really tough schedule so this success for them has been earned through grit and determination. I couldn’t be happier for the girls,” Gagnon said.

Rachel Canady, Hannah Chubbuck and Haley Armstrong scored for the Centaurs against the Bulldogs with Armstrong and Avery Jones getting assists.

The Centaurs finish up the regular season at 3:45 p.m.  on Tuesday when they host Suffield.