Penn-Trafford field hockey aiming for perfection

By: Paul Schofield
Friday, October 16, 2020 | 1:23 PM

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The Penn-Trafford field hockey team has won four consecutive WPIAL Class AA titles.

Is a fifth in store in 2020?

Coach Cindy Dutt thinks it could be.

Penn-Trafford is unbeaten and has a shot at its first perfect regular season.

After a five-day layoff because students at the high school tested positive for the coronavirus, the Warriors returned to action Oct. 14 with a dominating, 9-1 victory against Woodland Hills. Dutt played every player on the roster against Woodland Hills.

The contest helped Penn-Trafford work off the rust before it battled a good Fox Chapel team Oct. 15.

“We’re happy we got a chance to play a game before Fox Chapel,” Dutt said. “It was a good practice.”

Penn-Trafford entered the matchup 12-0 and owns two impressive, 4-2 wins against Upper St. Clair, a 2-0 win against North Allegheny, and a 3-1 win against Fox Chapel. Dutt called the North Allegheny win a statement.

Penn-Trafford returns 11 seniors, and Dutt said the squad has a lot of depth.

“We rarely miss a beat when I sub,” Dutt said. “We were rolling before the stoppage.”

Freshman Ava Hershberger is the team’s leading scorer with 10 goals and 12 assists.

Senior Allyson Doran has eight goals and six assists, senior Emma Little has seven goals and senior Julia Moorhead has six goals and four assists.

“We have a lot of girls who can find the back of the net,” Dutt said. “We have four girls (Doran, Little, Moorhead and Nina Bowling) that have started since their sophomore season.”

The other returning starters include seniors Hannah Ondulich (right half mid), Carleigh Drakulic (forward), Claire Tylka (right back), Maria DiNapoli (center back), Paige Goggin (left back) and Courtney Kravetz (center back).

Junior Gwen Hershberger is a first-year varsity goalkeeper.

Dutt said the program has come a long way since its inception in 2003.

“We started with 15 girls and even had a guy play goalie for us,” Dutt said. “Now, we have 40 girls. Our level of play has increased.”

Penn-Trafford was the Class AAA champion in 2011 and runner-up in 2012. Since dropping to Class AA, the Warriors have been unstoppable.

“We played against teams that were at a higher level (Class AAA) the past few seasons,” Dutt said. “Even though we had a few losses, it helped us in the Class AA playoffs.”

And Dutt said the girls want to add another title and compete better in the PIAA playoffs.

“They’re all hungry for another title,” Dutt said.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Penn-Trafford