Festival Teams Have Strong Showing In California
November 2009

Seacoast United Field Hockey just returned from a very successful showing at the USA Field Hockey Festival in Indio California where we had 3 teams participate, 2 at the U16 level and 1 at the U19 level.  Our U19 team won its pool, the 2 U16 teams both finished 4th in their pools.

After seven practices this summer and three more in November, the final pieces of the U16 Seacoast United Blue team came together at the USA Field Hockey Festival in Indio, CA over Thanksgiving weekend.  Athletes from all over the United States travelled to the Empire Polo Grounds to take on some of the best club teams in the country.  Playing in a very tough Y pool, Seacoast Blue held their own.  For some of the players it was their first opportunity to play under the new self start rule.  As the tournament progressed the team pulled together as a unit. The National Festival was a great success for the U16 Seacoast United Blue team.  Their level of play was raised with each passing game.  The opportunity to compete against some of the best players in the country in front of hundreds of college coaches was a great opportunity. The entire experience made for lasting memories.

The U19 group developed a high sophistication of hockey over the course of the weekend.  The girls forced each of their opponents to play at a higher level, and each athlete made a contribution to the team’s success at the festival.

Seacoast United Field Hockey Directors Announced
October 21, 2009

SUFH Players at Jr. Olympics, Orban Helps Team Win Gold
Iowa City, Iowa - August 2009 

Junior Olympians L to R:  Jordyn Hamilton, Kristen Felt, Stephanie Felt, Maegan Grew, and Jamie Trout

Seacoast United players turned up the heat at the 2009 Junior Olympic Games held in Iowa City, Iowa.  The 8-team tournament wrapped up August 1st for the Field Hockey portion of the Games.  Congrats to all six of our players for participating in the elite tournament and special congratulations goes to Kati Orban for helping her team win the gold medal!

Seacoast United Players Represented at 2009 Women’s Jr. World Cup 
Harvard University, August 5th 2009 

Seacoast United players participated in the "Ball Chaser" program during the Spain vs. New Zealand match.  Their primary responsibility was to inbound any balls that went out of play during the game.  International hockey is super fast so the girls had to be on their toes the entire time!  Everyone had a blast and enjoyed the experience being so close to the international athletes.  Pictured (left) from L to R:  Maegan Grew, Lauren Carroll, Nicole Pacheco, Lyndsie Rabenius, Jamie Trout, Cailin Flannery, and Kelsey LeBlanc.  Well done, Seacoast!

Jeanne O’Brien (left), coordinator of the Ball Chaser Program, talks ball chaser strategy with Lyndsie Rabenius during Wednesday’s Spain vs. New Zealand game (pictured, right).

"Being a ball girl for the Junior World Cup was a great experience!  It was amazing to be so close to the action.  Both teams were incredibly skilled, but they each had unique styles of play.  Having the Junior World Cup so close to home is a wonderful opportunity to see amazing field hockey, and I’m glad I got to take advantage of it.  Thank you so much for getting us involved with this, we had a great time!"
  - Jamie Trout (pictured, left)

13 SUFH Club Members Chosen for National Futures Championship Teams
June 2009

US Field Hockey hosts the National Futures Championship in late June every year in Virginia Beach, VA.  Teams from 11 regions across the US compete in this National Tournament.  Region 1 (NH, VT, ME) held its Regional Tournament on Sunday June 7th.  Hundreds of field hockey athletes competed, hoping to be selected for the team who travels down to Virginia.  A combined 13 Seacoast United Field Hockey Club members were chosen for the U14, U16 and U19 teams.  Congratulations to the following players:

U14s
Shauna Rankin-Byrne
Hannah Wellington

U16s
Jordyn Hamilton
Kristen Felt
Stephanie Felt
Jamie Trout
Maegan Grew
Nicole Pacheco
Kati Orban
Mallory Kosow
Alternate:  Cora Healey

U19s
Emily Cannon
Meghan Leary
Tori Welch
Alternate:  Tori Elliot

Pictured are U16’s (from L to R):  Katie Orban (Goalie), Mallory Kosow, Jordyn Hamilton, Maegan Grew, and  Kristen Felt.  Kneeling: Jamie Trout, Stephanie Felt, and Nicole Pacheco.

Best of luck to all the athletes!  Job well done!

6 Selected for AAU Junior Olympics
June 2009

Six Seacoast United Field Hockey Club players were selected to participate in the AAU Junior Olympics in Des Moines, Iowa.  The field hockey portion of the competition will begin on July 30th and run through August 2nd.  The selected athletes were chosen by a national committee during their play at the National Futures Championship in Virginia Beach over the last weekend in June.  Congratulations to Kristen Felt (Scarborough, ME), Stephanie Felt (Scarborough, ME), Maegan Grew (Hampton Falls, NH), Jordyn Hamilton (E. Hampstead, NH), Kati Orban (Plaistow, NH), and Jaime Trout (Portsmouth, NH)!

Seacoast United is pleased to announce that a combination of Kristin Iarrusso, Marian Connelly and Carolyn Connelly will be heading up the Seacoast United Field Hockey Club.  Over the course of the past week we have discussed how we feel the club should move forward and I am very excited to announce that between them, they have accepted the position of Field Hockey Directors at Seacoast United.

Marian has not only served as a Seacoast coach, but was one of the founding members of Seacoast United Field Hockey Club.  She is also currently on the Board of Directors and has been an advisor for many years.  She has an extensive knowledge of the youth tournament scene and after serving as the Futures site coordinator for a number of years, will bring valuable insight into how we should progress.

Kristin was our first ever student-athlete head coach at Seacoast.  While enjoying a very successful college career at UNH, she had the commitment and passion to involve herself in youth field hockey.  For two years she was the full-time assistant coach at UNH and has just finished as the Coaching Coordinator and Level 1 coach for the New England Futures Program.  Kristin will take the lead role with coaching direction and work with Robin Balducci in curriculum development, with emphasis on making sure we are offering our players the best possible chance of playing at the next level.

Carolyn, after playing and learning her trade with Seacoast United, had enjoyed a flourishing college career at Holy Cross.  In recent years, Carolyn has coached with Seacoast United and helped establish the summer camp curriculum.  She has also been a head coach with the Futures Program.  Carolyn will also be helping with coaching, marketing, and club development.

Between them, we could not have asked for more experience, passion, and dedication for field hockey.  On behalf of the Board of Directors, we feel that this transition and commitment will enhance our program and we support them in the quest to make Seacoast United a national competitor.  Their tenure in charge will begin this weekend at the tryouts for all of our age groups.

Ian Burgess
Director of Operations
Seacoast United