The sound of sticks hitting turf echo across the pitch as the Palo Alto High School girls field hockey team prepares for its upcoming season after graduating several key players and welcoming a younger roster.
The Vikings ended third last season in the El Camino Field hockey division, finishing with a 8-5-1 league record and a solid 11-7-1 overall record.
According to head coach Alexa Gwyn, the team will continue to be competitive despite the graduated talent.
“We definitely lost a lot of talent last year that graduated, but we’ve got really strong players and a lot of girls that I’m really excited about that are new to the team this year,” Gwyn said.
Captain and midfielder Ella Renazco-Sperling said one of her duties as a captain was to acquaint new players with the program and ensure they feel like part of the team.
“One of my jobs as a captain is to introduce them to the Paly field hockey environment,” Renazco-Sperling said. “I also want to get them situated onto the team and make sure that they’re included.”
According to junior forward Ela Aba, this season, the team will focus on rebuilding its chemistry this season after losing several key seniors and adding a number of underclassmen.
“We lost a lot of seniors, so it’s a moment of rebuilding,” Aba said. “But it’s not a fully rebuild season because we have a lot of great players.”
Gwyn said that she is excited for the team to face some of the same league rivals as last year while also competing against some new teams.
“It’s going to look pretty similar to last season because our leagues are still mixed,” Gwyn said. “We’re going to see some really tough teams, some newer teams and we’re gonna see some teams that are pretty even matches for us.”
According to Aba, similar to previous seasons, the program will focus on getting their team dynamics set with a new and young core.
“It’s honestly the same start as any other season start,” Aba said. “You’re still figuring things out with new players and everything … There’s actually a lot of underclassmen. There’s one freshman and three sophomores, so they’ll get used to it.”
According to Gwyn, her objective this season is to motivate her team to work together rather than focusing on personal development.
“My goal as a coach is to help this team understand how to do hard work for one another, and to work as a collective whole rather than only focusing on their individual development,” Gwyn said. “I want them to focus on doing the hard work for their teammates.”
The Vikings will kick off their season taking on the Homestead Mustangs 5:15 p.m. Thursday at home.
