Garden City, N.Y. – The Adelphi University field hockey team will welcome seven incoming players for the 2013 season, including six freshmen and one transfer, Head Coach Gloria O'Connor announced on Monday. The newest Panthers will build upon the success of last season that saw Adelphi host its first-ever Northeast-10 Conference Tournament game and make it to the NE-10 Semifinals for the first time since 2009.
The incoming class includes Tina Brindisi (Wanaque, N.J./Lakeland Regional), Rachel Colvin (Vernon, N.J./Vernon Township), Jordan Miller (Farmingville, N.Y./Sachem East), Lena Pollich (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa), Natalina Sagliocca (Copiague, N.Y./Walter G. O'Connell Copiague), Jessica Smalling (Holbrook, N.Y./Sachem North) and Arielle Theofield (Sayville, N.Y./Sayville).
Hailing exclusively from New York and New Jersey, the incoming class features four players who can play multiple positions, as well as two forwards and a goalie.
“Our coaching staff is excited to welcome this strong group of student athletes into our AU family,” O'Connor said. “It's more important than ever to bring in a talented class who will contribute right away. These seven recruits will compete at every field position and they will provide the depth we need in our attack and defense positions.”
The Panthers' class of 2017 will be asked to pick up where the senior class of 2012 left off. Last year's core of five seniors featured three NE-10 All-Conference picks, accounted for 50 percent of the team's goals, and included program record holders for career saves, defensive saves and games played.
“We had a successful season in 2012 and we're confident that these recruits will help our team continue to improve,” O'Connor said. “They will be the spark that we need to win in the NE-10.”
A multiple-sport athlete in high school, Brindisi can roam at midfield and back, and played four seasons of varsity field hockey at Lakeland Regional High School where she captained the team for two years. She earned the honor of North Jersey Player of the Year as a senior and led the Lancers to conference and county titles.
Colvin is a tenacious scorer from Vernon Township High School, where she turned heads not only for her field hockey skills, but for playing four seasons of ice hockey on the boy's team, which she captained as a senior. She led her county with 59 points over her career with 24 goals and 11 assists, was named to the All-Herald and All-NJAC American Division first teams and played club field hockey in the prestigious national Futures competition. On the ice, Colvin was the first female to score a goal for the boy's team and went on to post seven markers over her career. Colvin's list of academic honors is expansive and culminated with 2013 Sussex County United Way Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, given annually to a high school student who excels in academics, athletics and community service.
Miller is the first of five Long Island athletes in the recruiting class and led Sachem East to Suffolk County, Long Island and New York State Championships in 2012. She played her way onto SCFHCA All-Division and All-Conference teams as a senior goalie and helped making winning a habit as the Flaming Arrows went 45-2 during her three seasons of varsity service. Miller competed in the National Indoor Championship at the Disney Showcase and participated in the National Field Hockey Festival.
Pollich, a speedy forward from Massapequa, earned extensive club experience playing for Strong Island Field Hockey on top of guiding her high school squad to back-to-back Conference and Nassau County championships. An All-Conference selection as a senior, Pollich is also the first junior Olympian to play Adelphi field hockey after racing at the 2012 Junior Olympics.
Sagliocca played three seasons of varsity field hockey at Walter G. O'Connell Copiague High School and suited up for two years in the Long Island Fierce league. The most compact of the incoming players at 5-foot-1, Sagliocca makes up for her lack in size with her quickness and leadership abilities.
Smalling comes off a three-year varsity career at Sachem North where she was named Team MVP and All-County as a senior. A sizeable defender, Smalling possesses superior field vision and should compete right away for a starting spot.
Theofield, the lone transfer in the group, joins the Panthers as a senior following graduation from Suffolk Community College. Theofield enjoyed exuberant success at Sayville High School, where she lettered in field hockey for three seasons. Along with multiple All-County and All-State awards, Theofield was selected to a pair of National Futures Championship events and played in the Disney Showcase and National Field Hockey Festival along with playing for the Strong Island club team.
Adelphi's incoming class will officially don the Brown and Gold for the first time when the Panthers open the season at home against defending national champion Westchester University on September 6.
