The Cal Poly women’s field hockey team will defend its Western Collegiate Field Hockey Conference (WCFHC) title next season — an honor they have earned four out of the past five years — yet, they will still probably go relatively unnoticed.
Cal Poly head coach Rose Aspelin Hall, who just took over the job several weeks ago, said field hockey’s success should yield more respect.
“Yeah I think because they are so successful, there should be a little more support,” Hall said when asked about a lack of respect. “And field allocation (is the) same thing, they are kinda on the bottom of the list as far as getting time slots (on the turf field). I mean just having the field painted … so we can have our lines and practice game situations. I think they work hard like any other team.”
Cal Poly solidified the top spot in conference by defeating UC Davis in the fall championships, a team that recently became Division 1, which Cal Poly midfielder Casey Wollbrink hopes will “get the ball rolling” and raise awareness for field hockey not just in California, but the West Coast.
“Field hockey, soccer (and) cricket are all the top sports in the world actually, every country has a national team and a club team,” Rose said. Field hockey just hasn’t caught on like it has on the East Coast; “I don’t know why,” she added.
In a game that is tactically similar to soccer, field hockey has many rules that often leave spectators guessing.
“There are a lot of rules, so as a spectator I think unless you know those, you are always wondering why the whistle is blowing,” Rose said.
“It’s definitely more of a finesse, skill sport (where you are) learning how to always move the ball,” Cal Poly sophomore goalie Jessie Miller said. “There are a lot of specific rules that field hockey has, like you can’t turn your back to block the ball, you have to always have your feet moving, or else you get the foul … I know a lot of people have no idea what’s going on when they watch the game.”
There is a unique camaraderie that attracts field hockey players to the sport, Wollbrink said.
“I feel like on the West Coast since most kids don’t start ’til high school, we all know that it’s hard at the beginning, whereas soccer you start when you are like, 5,” she said. “In field hockey you realize, yeah we have all struggled pretty recently because it was only like four years that we started playing.”
Miller described it as a weird, natural connection.
“Soccer has such a competitive, everybody-plays-it sport,” she said. “But when it comes to field hockey, it’s unique, not a lot of people play it and you definitely have to travel further to play. It’s more of an acquired skill, not something supernatural, so when you find girls that play field hockey I know that I immediately bond with them.”
As with all the successful Cal Poly teams, the field hockey girls have trouble vying for time to play on the turf fields, which should be a necessity rather than a luxury, Cal Poly sophomore defender Amber Zimmermann said.
“In comparison to other sports the field makes all the difference; the turf game versus the grass game is so much different,” she said.
Cal Poly sophomore goalie Jessie Miller said the grass field outside the Recreation Center that the team practices and plays games on causes many unexpected bounces that slow down the pace. Practices on the unforgiving Santa Rosa cement courts train the team more effectively and speed up play.
The WCFHC was formed to increase field hockey awareness and level of play on the West Coast.
“I would say all the stick sports, lacrosse, field hockey, are gaining momentum out here,” Miller said.