SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Being a senior always means being a leader, but when you have four different coaches in four years like Hathaway Brown goalie Riley Whitmyer, you have an even bigger role on your team.
Whitmyer helped guide a young team to a successful season. She was the rock in net for the Blazers. She stopped 124 shots in net this year and has been named the cleveland.com Field Hockey Goalie of the Year. Next season, she'll be playing at Colby College.
While Hathaway Brown fell short of its goal of reaching the state tournament, leadership contributions from players like Whitmyer have the program set up well for the future.
Here, Whitmyer discusses what it's like to play goalie, Hathaway Brown, and helping her coaches as told to the Northeast Ohio Media Group:
In middle school, I couldn't decide between volleyball and field hockey, so I spent a year playing each. My mom suggested I should play goalie, so I listened to her and tried all the pads on. I had played ice hockey previously, so I was used to the pads. I put them on and loved it, and ever since, I've been playing.
It's so much fun. I get into a zone. You see everything happen back there because you're in such a crucial position. It can be stressful for sure, but it's nice being that one person that can really change the game or be the rock for your team.
Each year, I had a different coach. We were each other's rock in this situation, and we really became close. We helped our coaches a little bit to get acclimated. We took the underclassmen under our wings and helped them through.
We definitely had some things to work out this year because we were a younger team, but everyone stepped up to the plate. We played awesome towards the end of the season. Unfortunately, it didn't end well, but having a young team, we had an awesome season.
There are so many memories. We would make YouTube videos, sing and have dress-up days at school. It's hard to pick just one moment. Everything we did, we had fun with it. I'll never forget it.
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Contact high school sports reporter David Cassilo by email (dcassilo@cleveland.com) or Twitter (@dcassilo). Or log in and leave a message in the comments section below.
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