By Wayne Witkowski
Jackson Memorial High School’s field hockey players did something few other teams did while participating in a 7-a-side league that played on Tuesday and Thursday nights for a month ending in late July.
“We didn’t have a goalie back there. None signed up,” said Jenna Blondina, who is entering her fifth year as head coach at Jackson Memorial, which had its winningest season last fall at 15-3-2. “It was just about getting touch on the ball and [learning] positions. It was an opportunity to get players together from incoming freshmen to the seniors.”
But the Jaguars will look to resolve that goaltending issue when preseason practices officially begin Aug. 15, leading up to the 3:45 p.m. season opener Sept. 9 at Toms River High School South — a rival in the Shore Conference A South Division. In that division last year, Jackson Memorial lost only to Southern Regional High School, 4-2 — a loss it avenged later in the season.
Morgan Novak, last year’s goalie, graduated, and she and teammate Jennifer McNamara are embarking on college careers this fall at Rowan University.
Jackson Memorial players, along with players from Carl W. Goetz Middle School, participated Aug. 1-3 in Jackson in the All-American Field Hockey Exposure Camp. It included two sessions each day split into morning and afternoon camps. The camp clinicians consisted of NCAA Division I and II coaches and players.
Nine players graduated from last year’s team that reached the finals of the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group IV tournament, losing, 2-1, in overtime to Freehold Township High School, which claimed its second straight section title and third in four years.
Jackson Memorial lost its Shore Conference Tournament opener, 2-1, to Jackson Liberty High School on penalty strokes, 3-1, after both teams scored in the first half and neither team could score after that into two overtimes.
“The [returning] players know what they have to do to get to that next level,” Blondina said.
That means developing chemistry and mental toughness, which Blondina feels her team showed when it rallied from a two-goal deficit in the section semifinals to beat Monroe Township High School, 4-2. Jackson Memorial trailed, 2-1, at halftime and scored three unanswered goals in the second half, as Chloe Daum, who will be a junior this upcoming school year, led the way with a pair of scores.
Blondina declined to single out players by name with 28 signed up at this early stage.
“We do have a lot of offensive players back. We need to work a little more on defense,” she said.
Kayla Skodmin led the way last year with 20 goals to go with 11 assists, and Amanda Miller had 16 goals and 14 assists. Both graduated. Taryn Wilkkins, who will be a senior this upcoming school year, fired in 15 goals.
“I’m absolutely optimistic and excited about the season to start,” Blondina said.
She has two new assistant coaches in Kaitlyn Zarrilli and Devyn Klich.
“The players are running on their own. They need to come in [to preseason training] in shape so we can work on our stick [handling] skills,” Blondina said. “Even the freshmen last year worked out with the team in its state playoff run and saw things at that level.”
The team will not travel at the start of the season as it did last year when it went to Orlando, Florida.
“We’re looking at doing that every other year,” Blondina said.
But she has an ambitious preseason scrimmage schedule that includes a Pinelands Regional High school team that she said looms strong for this season, as well as Lacey Township High School, Point Pleasant Borough High School, Wall High School and Manchester Township High School.
Central Regional High School is a newcomer to A South for this season, and Lacey was moved from A South to another division.
