Ocean field hockey among top area teams
Spartans in the midst of nine-game win streak
BY DOUG MCKENZIE Correspondent
Ocean Township's Donna DeNoble thought her team had the potential to be among the Shore's elite squads this season.

Now, with her field hockey team in the midst of a nine-game winning streak entering the week's action, the veteran head coach is starting to think her team may be the top team in the conference.

"We're as good as anybody else," she said. "I don't know that we'll be the top seed in the [upcoming] Shore Conference Tournament, but we'll certainly be one of the top seeds."

The Spartans have certainly earned consideration for that top spot. After losing to Wall Township early in the year, the Spartans have not lost since, improving to 10-1 on the year with an 11-1 win over Long Branch on Saturday.

"Things have really come together for us," DeNoble said. "We got off to a rough start with the loss to Wall, and had to overcome the loss of one of our top players, [senior] Jenna Galatro, who has been out with a stress fracture. She's a four-year starter and an important piece of the puzzle, so without her, I had to rearrange a lot of stuff."

Galatro made her season debut against Long Branch and was expected to see even more time this week as the Spartans took on Holmdel on Tuesday and played for the B North division title yesterday against Matawan. Though her return certainly makes Ocean an even more imposing force, her absence also helped show DeNoble just how much depth this year's team has.

As a result, Ocean has played well on both sides of the field. Defensively, they are led by senior goalie Danielle Reichardt, who had already posted seven shutouts entering the week.

"Danielle is a first-year starter who played behind Eric Conway, a First Team All-Shore goalie, last year," DeNoble said. "But she's stepped right in and had a great season so far."

The rest of the lineup is interchangeable, which makes the Spartans even more difficult to prepare for.

Seniors Kelly Montgomery, Joelle Bagley and Katie Conway are back and have picked up right where they left off last year, when the Spartans finished 17-2-1.

"They were strong last year, and they're even better this year," DeNoble said.

Senior Kat Rodziewicz has been brilliant in the midfield, as has sophomore Sam English.

"Kat has 10 goals already and is having a phenomenal season," the coach said. "She goes wherever we need her to. And Sam is a first-year starter who has filled in nicely."

Senior forward Jenna Schoch is another offensive force, with 10 goals already, while junior forward Becky Gilmin also has a knack for finding the cage.

And then there's freshman Mallory Nelson, who has surprised DeNoble with how quickly she's adjusted to the varsity game.

"We brought her up in the fourth game of the season, and she's proven to be an exceptionally strong player," the coach said. "She does not play like a freshman, that's for sure. She earned her starting spot and has five goals in four games. She just has amazing talent for a freshman."

With the postseason tournaments rapidly approaching, the Spartans appear to be peaking at the right time, though DeNoble does have some concerns on the defensive side of the field.

"We had a lot of offensive games, so our defense hasn't been tested as much as we're going to see in the tournaments," she said. "Hopefully, we'll just keep getting better as we go."