SECTION IV FIELD HOCKEY: NEWARK VALLEY SEEKS IMPROVEMENT WITH EXPERIENCE (2025-08-22)

Tioga County Sports Report
OWEGO — Newark Valley will look to take advantage of its youth the past couple of years as it heads into the 2025 field hockey season with some experience. The Cardinals have graduated just three players combined from the 2023 and 2024 squads.

“Some of that youth has now grown up,” said coach Jessica Doehring. “We have two seniors this year and I think five juniors, a handful of sophomores, and we have one freshman and one 8th-grader up this year. We have two brand new players as well. We definitely still have some youth, and experience, but we've got a lot more on the top side now, which is good.”

Doehring won’t have a large roster to work with, but will have a few players to bring in off the bench.

“We should have, I think, 13 or 14 once everything settles with preseason and stuff, so I think we're about the same we were last year.”

Doehring also likes the attitude the players are bringing to practice.

“It seems positive,” she said. “Everyone seems excited and happy to be here. It's a nice group. They seem to get along well, and they're having fun and practicing hard and playing hard, but also laughing and enjoying themselves, which I think, especially when you're a smaller program with less experience, that you really need to make sure you're having a positive time as well.”

There’s a lot of work to be done to get ready for the season opener against powerhouse Vestal and Doehring knows what she needs to focus on.

“For our newer and younger players, going over some of the basics, teaching things to the two new players, and then kind of introducing more of the higher level concepts to everyone, and then just reviewing and reinforcing with our upperclassmen, trying to establish a comfortable team atmosphere, our communication.”

The opener will be at NV on Sept. 3.

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IN PHOTO 1: Jessica Doehring will see a mix of experience on the field this season. IN TOP PHOTO: NV will have seven upperclassmen on the roster. … PHOTOS BY TIM TAYLOR.

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