Aug. 24, 2005
EVANSTON, Ill. -- When Northwestern's field hockey head coach Kelly McCollum, assistant coach Jennifer Pelleriti and volunteer assistant coach Donna Barg, played for the `Cats in the mid-90's, Northwestern perennially sat atop the Big Ten standings.
Ten years later, the three are back together to take the program to the prominent position it enjoyed when the three were playing instead of coaching.
The 2005 field hockey team looks to continue the upward movement it experienced during the 2004 season, McCollum's first as head coach. Now in her second year, McCollum has changed the players' attitudes and expectations, demanding her team be able to compete with the best collegiate field hockey has to offer. McCollum is doing this by bringing in knowledgeable coaches, dedicated players and lining up some of the toughest competition in the nation on her schedule.
"The philosophy of our program is that to be the best, you must play the best. Our goal to be nationally recognized means we have to play that kind of competition. We have gone out and challenged ourselves by scheduling numerous teams in the ACC, and of course our conference is one of the best. We are excited about the challenge and so are our players," McCollum said.
Following last season, the `Cats lost All-American Candice Cooper to graduation. While it was a big loss, the 2005 Wildcats have a number of student-athletes primed to step in and fill her shoes.
"We have some incoming freshmen who are already capable of adding to our offense. Also, we are moving Holly Palin (Mequon, Wis./University School of Milwaukee) to the front line and she will be a big plus there this year," McCollum said.
Besides Palin, the Wildcats' offense will also benefit from junior forward Megan Sieberg (Toledo, Ohio/Maumee Valley Country Day), senior forward Ellen Schlafly (St. Louis, Mo./MICDS) and junior midfielder Meghan Small (Bethlehem, Pa./Moravian Academy), who second behind Cooper in goals last season with four.
"We have a very solid five-forward group to work with and that gives us tremendous depth. I am expecting a more balanced attack with more people involved across the board," McCollum said.
As the saying goes, however, it's defense that wins championships. With junior goalkeeper Sherri-Anne Nyberg (Kelowna, British Columbia/Kelowna Secondary) -- who logged 1092 minutes in goal, allowing only 1.86 goals per game last season -- and senior defender Christine Nannicelli (Walpole, Mass./Walpole), McCollum has high hopes for this year's backfield. Senior Kelly Augustine (Northampton, Pa./Northampton) also contributes much experience in the cage.
"This will be an exciting year for the backfield with the leadership of Christine Nannicelli, who is a three-year starter. We have a lot of experience to draw on with several returning starters. In goal, I am looking for our veterans to take charge and grow. This position will be critical to our success this year. The addition of Donna Barg as a volunteer assistant has really helped our goalkeepers develop their play," she said.
Palin and Nannicelli have been named team captains for the 2005 season. During the offseason, both were selected to participate in the USA Field Hockey Elite Performance Training Centers' Championship over the summer.
"We are very excited for this season," McCollum said. "This team has developed our own direction and ownership of what we are trying to achieve. The senior leadership, along with or captains, has helped the whole group take big strides to put us in a position to be where we want to be this year."
And back atop the Big Ten standings is exactly where they hope to be at season's end.