Jess Shellenberger said she feels that things are looking up for Lancaster-Lebanon League field hockey in the coming years. But there’s more than a feeling to it. The Manheim Township coach has some evidence to back up that notion.
The Next Level Under-14 team, consisting of mostly Lancaster County players, won the 11-v-11 tournament at the USA Field Hockey Disney Sunshine Showcase, which was held last weekend in Kissimmee, Florida.
Under the coaching staff of Shellenberger and Hempfield assistant Melissa Schimp, Next Level went 6-0 while outscoring its opponents 26-2 to win the 56-team event.
The roster from Next Level consisted of sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade players from Lancaster County schools Conestoga Valley, Hempfield, Lancaster Catholic, Lancaster Country Day, Manheim Central, Manheim Township, Penn Manor, Pequea Valley and Warwick. There were also players from Northeastern and Wilson.
“This is unbelievably encouraging for the L-L League,” said Shellenberger, who guided Manheim Township to the PIAA Class 3A final last fall. “These girls are some of the top players on their junior high teams, and I expect them to be the future leaders and stars at their high school programs. They have tremendous talent as individuals and come together beautifully as one team. I am so proud of who they are and what they can do together.
“I know each high school program that they represent will be better for these girls coming back to support their school teams with leadership, skills and knowledge gained as they compete at such a high level week in and week out.”
The six opponents came from five states: Virginia, Texas, Connecticut, Maryland and Kentucky.
Though Shellenberger knew her team had talent, she said the players had to make quick adjustments to succeed in an outdoor tournament in Florida after being in the middle of a dreary January in Pennsylvania.
“The real adjustment for the girls is that we are in our indoor season, which is primarily played on sport court,” Shellenberger said. “It’s really an entirely different game, so prepping for this tournament is tough. We had only three practices at Red Rose on small-sided turf, so really not running the big field.
“So for them to adjust to the outdoor game, travel, be outside in the heat and play so well, it’s just awesome. We also had guest players with us, so adjusting to new teammates was also a challenge. Some of the players we met when we arrived there.”
The members of the Next Level squad were Livy Krell, Lorelei Weber, Emma Epler, Addie Martin, Brooke Harting, Anna Abboud, Kelby Dings, Emily Daecher, Lily Gill, Amelia Rockwell, Lily Fisher, Taylor Schimp, Olivia Francis, Allie Bradley, Lily-Anne Weiderman and Katie Baran.
In addition to Next Level’s success, PA United from Hershey won the Under-14 7-v-7 competition.
