HIGH SCHOOL FIELD HOCKEY
AUGUST 20, 2007
District One Preview: Ballard, KCD are contenders
South Oldham odd team out after North Oldham's recent withdrawal from district
By
NATHAN CHAMBERS
BeyondTheDerby.com
Ballard and Kentucky Country Day are two of the teams on a very short list of realistic challengers to dethrone defending state champion Sacred Heart this season.
Considering that those are two of just three teams in the district, the third - South Oldham - looks a little lonely.
The Dragons made their varsity debut last season and earned two of their four wins against cross-county rival North Oldham, which was expected to compete in the district again but recently decided to play only a junior varsity schedule because the program has merely one junior and no seniors.
Ballard showed its mettle in the Apple Tournament, knocking off Christian Academy, KCD and Collegiate in successive games before shutting out Sacred Heart for almost 45 minutes in a 1-0 loss in the final on Saturday.
“I think we proved that we can beat any team on any given day,” said Ballard coach Kelly Logsdon, who guided the Bruins to the state final in her first season in 2005.
Logsdon returns six starters from a team that reached the quarterfinals. She also has 13 seniors, including two who already have committed to Division I college programs. Senior defender Kelsey Rothberg has chosen the University of Louisville, and senior forward Amanda Seeley (pictured) has picked Miami (Ohio) University. Seeley scored 12 goals last year, which ranked second on the team, but she will be one of the most dangerous offensive players in the state this season.
Seeley's not the only proven scorer; senior forward Ali Pulliam led the Bruins with 14 goals. Another senior, Abigail Mulloy, is back to anchor the midfield. Ballard also has two talented juniors, goalie Lara Williams and defender Molly Dean. Williams is one of just five Kentuckians who reached the USA Field Hockey Futures Elite level this summer and she is one of only two who were selected as alternates to the Junior National Camp in July.
“Having 13 seniors and all those starters back really helps,” Logsdon said. “We didn’t have to rebuild the lineup.”
Her predecessor, Amy Charasika, has to do some of that in her third season at KCD. After reaching the state final a year ago, the Bearcats return four starters and have nine new varsity players. But Charasika’s expectations are no lower.
“I completely expect us to compete for a state title,” she said. “Are we ready now? No, we’re certainly not. But we will be.”
Senior forward Christena Burell, who will join Seeley at Miami next year, scored a team-high 19 goals last season and will have to deliver a lot of offensive punch again; the second-, third-, and fourth-leading scorers all graduated. She’s capable of doing it, but the Bearcats also need senior Maggie Flowers and junior Kelly Beam - who, interestingly, is the lacrosse team’s goalie - to score, too.
The other returning starters are seniors Christy Chapman and Gray Robinson in the middle and junior goalie Sarah Anderson, who made a splash during the state tournament last year. But Anderson is protected by a brand new defense that includes senior Alexandra Siefke and junior Molly Dobbins, whose two older sisters and mother all played for KCD.
South Oldham coach Laura Abrams also returns four starters. The Dragons’ strength stretches down the center of the field, with junior goalie Rachel Moosbrugger, senior midfielder Kaitlynn Bramer, and senior forward Brittanie Carroll.
The Dragons lost 10-0 to Assumption in their Apple Tournament opener last week and subsequently lost 10-0 to Christian Academy in their first game in the consolation bracket.
“It’s good for the girls to get exposure to teams like that,” Abrams said. “It gives them insight into who they’re going to face.”
