Seniors to Pace Stoughton High Field Hockey Team This Fall

After , the Stoughton High field hockey team will turn to a dozen seniors this season to help the Black Knights aim for their first postseason berth in five seasons.

Stoughton finished the 2011 season at 2-12-2, with both wins coming against Davenport Division rival Sharon. The Black Knights will look to improve upon that mark in 2012.

Leading this year's seniors are captains Nicole Kerman, Kelsie LaFerriere, Jordan Angelos and Ilanna Schlehuber.

Marcia Lourie, a senior who moved from Rhode Island to Stoughton last school year after the field hockey season had already concluded, also figures to be part Stoughton's rotation this fall, Stoughton Coach Dan Mark said.

Last season's record: 2-12-2

First game: Stoughton opens its season Friday, September 7 at Atteboro. The Black Knights are back in action the next day, Saturday, September 8, traveling to Pembroke.

Head Coach: Dan Mark

Captains: Seniors Nicole Kerman, Kelsie LaFerriere, Jordan Angelos, Ilanna Schlehuber

Burning Question: Who replaces Christina Bacon net?

Bacon graduated this past spring with the class of 2012. Katie Cellucci backed Bacon up as a freshman last year, and takes the starting job this season as a sophomore.

Fellow sophomore Michelle Connolly (her father Michael Connolly is principal of Mansfield High School) is another underclassman who will play a key role on the team this year. Connolly will play midfield, Mark said.

The other key contributors are all juniors or seniors.

Outlook: Coach Mark said that the team lost a lot of members of the Class of 2012 due to graduation who played regularly last season, so it "remains to be seen who will step up" and fill the void.

However, Mark said going into a season he is "always optimistic."

"A lot of kids worked hard in the offseason. Hopefuly that [leads to] some improvement," he said.

Kerman said she was going into the season with a "positive attitude" taking a one game at a time approach.

The captains help lead a It's a close-knit team. "We're not just teammates. We're [like] family," LaFerriere said.

Angelos said communication will be a key to the team's success this season. After going through a "rebuilding phase" over the last few seasons, she hopes the team can continue to improve.

"It's a new team. We're really excited to work together to try to win," Schlehuber said.