Hempfield welcomes a new field hockey coach

Sender: Dave Mackall

Wednesday, September 8, 2021 | 15.40

Hempfield field hockey, a program that hasn’t had at least a .500 record since its inception nearly 20 years ago, is waiting for former St.Franciscus (Pa.) Midfielder Nikki (Snyder) Schmitt this season, hoping to build a winner.

He replaces Michele Fischer, whose teams at Hempfield never won more than one game in eight years as their coach.

Hempfield’s season is 1-9, but Schmitt said he is looking forward to a new era. A list of 30 players, including 10 seniors, prepared for the first Spartan match led by Schmitt on Tuesday in Pine-Richland.

“I was a little late for the party, but as soon as we were hired, we started,” said Schmitt, a former high school star in District 2 at Lake Lehman and a three-year novice St. Captain during its 2014 season.

“I’m excited about the season. I know the sport inside and out, ”said Schmitt, who only started as a coach in May.

Schmitt, who played Nikki Snyder at the time, was a state honorable mention who was selected for Class A Lake Lehman School, a school in northeastern Pennsylvania in Wyoming County, an area with much success.

The sport is lagging behind in the western half of the state, where in WPIAL only 18 schools offer it this season in three sections – seven in Class 3A, six in Class 2A and five in Class A.

“It’s sure to grow here,” Schmitt said, “but it’s still hard for us to travel along Pittsburgh. I think I’m lucky to get into this coaching role. There’s definitely room to grow.”

Despite the low popularity of the sport in the area, Schmitt has high hopes of increasing Hempfield’s presence to eventually make it possible for the playoffs.

He said he has not focused much on other schools, even before the start of the schedule, and insists that the priority is to “get to know this team and this team alone.

“It’s an incredibly exciting opportunity to be a university coach here,” he said.

“I put a lot of stock in high school athletics. It is very important to me because it offered me a chance at university. “

The accession of Hempfield and Pine-Richland to WPIAL’s only Class 3A section are Allderdice, Mt. Lebanon, North Allegheny, Norwin and Peters Township.

While there has been no success on field hockey over the years, the best performance of the Hempfield Spartans was the 4-6 session limit in 2009 — Schmitt, who teaches learning support at Harrold Middle School, was encouraged by the first-season turnout. .

“I was surprised at how big the senior class is this year,” he said, “and this is their fourth year together. They represent the core of people who are interested in college.”

“We have a list full of college and JV players with good depth in every place.”

Schmitt said he has adapted well to Hempfield, a school that has enrolled much more than his alma mater. He welcomed ten seniors to the camp in August and eventually ended up with a captain quartet consisting of group members Emmaline Harry, Shannon Lutz, Julianna Paronish and Megan Ritson.

Other seniors include Taylor Fordyce, Amara Forsyth, Maysoon Idrees, Ashlyn Radocaj, Gianna Stump and Delphine Vandael.

The rest of the list includes eight juniors and sophomores as well as four freshmen.

Schmitt’s previous coaching experience is brief, as he has served as a volunteer assistant for two seasons.

Her husband Steve Schmitt works as his assistant in Hempfield.

“This job just fell into my arms,” he said of the late-opened Hempfield station. “They were looking for a coach, and I was definitely going to go back to coaching.”

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