At the beginning of fall sports season, junior varsity (JV) field hockey coach Meagan Rowe works to form her team. One major quality she looks for in athletes is hand-eye coordination. Agility and constant movement, as well as an open mind, also factor in.
“When a lot of people come to watch field hockey, they’re like, ‘I don’t understand this sport at all,’” Rowe said. “It’s a bit complicated. So, I think the willingness to learn and try something new that is a little different than a lot of other sports is important.”
Coaching at the JV level puts Rowe in a unique position. Although the team does not compete to win at Southwest Preparatory Conference (SPC), it is essential for keeping younger athletes interested in the sport and allowing them to enjoy the game without the large time commitment of varsity.
“JV is a good mix of girls that are brand new to the sport who are trying something out, which is amazing to do at any age, and some girls that just need a little bit more time or need to be pushed to more of a leadership role,” Rowe said.
The focus is on developing their individual skills so that when they move up to varsity, they can hit the ground running.
“We always ask, ‘is it better to be on varsity, but never go into the game?’” Rowe said. ‘Or, ‘is it better to stay on JV, but never come off the field and be the one dictating the play and really helping the team move along?’ That leadership brings a different skill set that is so unique and important.”
Because field hockey is one of the few sports where all of the coaching staff for all teams are full-time faculty, communication between the varsity, JV and middle school coaches is constant, benefitting the athletes.
“We talk pretty much daily, if not every other day, about what we’re doing at practice, how some athletes are doing and how the newer athletes are picking up the sport,” Rowe said. “We talk of some of the concepts they’re covering at the varsity level, and I try to replicate that as best I can at the JV level so that the girls are best prepared to move to the next level.”
Sophomore Amy Yan is one athlete who made the transition up. She played JV basketball as a freshman before moving up to varsity this year. Playing at the varsity level was a big step up for her.
“With varsity, we have a lot more practices because the JV practices got canceled a lot,” Yan said. “We also have more games. I would also say that practice is way, exponentially more intense than JV because of the pace at which we do the drills and also the difficulty of what we’re practicing.”
Yan credits the JV team with helping her build the fundamental skills that she needed to get onto varsity and do well there.
“The importance of having JV teams is to be good for if you want to eventually play on varsity, but maybe you’re not ready for that yet,” Yan said. “It’s also a bit less intensive for people who maybe just want to play for fun.”
Senior Camilla Fuentes, who has played on the JV soccer team for the past four years, focuses on enjoying the sport. This past season, she was the only senior on the team. Fuentes is also a four-year member of the varsity softball team.
“JV was a much better fit in atmosphere for me,” Fuentes said. “On varsity softball, there’s a lot of pressure to do well and not make mistakes. JV soccer is a lot more chill, and you can have a lot more fun and not worry too much about it.”
Fuentes also captained the JV soccer team this year.
“As the only senior, it’s kind of expected of you to be a leader,” Fuentes said. “My coach also pulled me to her office and told me that the girls from before left the team to me and that I had to be a good role model for the younger girls.”
Fuentes believes JV teams provide more opportunities for students.
“I think it’s important to have JV teams because not everyone can or wants to play at a varsity level,” Fuentes said. “It’s important that there’s a space where people can play and have fun and still continue to develop their skills so they can play at the varsity level later if they choose.”
