Cox: The Squad That Topped The Nation!
From left, Cox seniors Stephanie DiMasi, Elizabeth Beckner, Alayna Versage, Taylor Rhea, Meredith Corner, Kelsey Rosenmeier, and Cara Witte represented their squad on the All-State field hockey team this season. The Lady Falcons went 25-0 to take home their fourth consecutive state title. Photo by Jason Norman
By the time Christmas came around, the Cox field hockey team might have already had its fill of giving and receiving.
The Lady Falcons had spent the last three months giving dozens of local field hockey teams some rough afternoons and evenings, culminating in a 25-0 season. To one another, they'd been exchanging assists, corner shots, compliments, and camaraderie, some for the past few years.
And if receiving the Beach District, Eastern Region, and a fourth consecutive state title weren't enough, many of the girls received a special kind of individual recognition, filling up the All-District and All-Region squads as their season ended with a 5-0 win over Mountain View for the Virginia AAA championship on Nov. 17 at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex.
"Many of these girls, I've played with since middle school," recalls goalkeeper Elizabeth Buckley, who allowed just four goals throughout the entire season, "and to end on such a wonderful note was just amazing. That night, I was just on cloud nine, and it took a while for the feeling to go away."
Then again, Christmas comes every year; to be ranked amongst the best in the Old Dominion - even the nation -- was something that few ever get to experience.
As the girls waited to see where they'd rank on the All-State squad, many of the 11 seniors could see enough memories to cover their home field. Stephanie DeMasi, one of Cox's last lines of defense before encountering Beckner, remembered a season that wasn't nearly as easy as the record made it seem.
"All of our rivals were tough games, because every single team in (the Beach) district is really difficult," said DeMasi, who will take her field hockey skills to Virginia Commonwealth University next fall. "As much as we tried to stay confident, we were ready for anything. We all tried to work together on defense. One of our strengths was how much depth our team had, from offense to defense to our goalie; that kind of communication is something that most teams can't say they have."
Some girls remembered a season start that didn't exactly foreshadow greatness; early on, the Lady Falcons edged Stafford, 2-1.
"No one was really happy," said Meredith Corner (an apt last name for a field hockey player!). "Coach (Julie) Swain kind of came down on us, and we were upset because we knew we could do better. We didn't go into it with our best attitudes."
As the squad marched toward local play, remembered defender Alayna Versage, "We also learned a lot about our attitudes, about preparing ourselves mentally. Swain really made sure we spent a lot of time preparing for the games and fixing the mistakes we'd made."
Just before the regular season rolled, the Lady Falcons defeated nationally-ranked Sacred Heart of Louisville 5-2. Over the next few weeks, Cox swept former state champ Princess Anne, and handily defeated common contender Ocean Lakes, as well as a shutout of Southeastern District powerhouse Lakeland. With just about every other field hockey squad in Virginia done for the year, Cox got rolling in the regional tourney.
"The regional is the hardest tournament," said midfielder Taylor Rhea. "We'd already gotten past the district, and we didn't really know what to expect, because we hadn't played some of the teams before." But things kept working for the Lady Falcons, as they defeated Western Branch in the quarterfinals, Gloucester in the semis, and finishing with a 4-0 win over Lakeland to take the regional title, and it was on to state.
Beckner held Cosby scoreless in the first game, and Rhea whacked in six goals as the Lady Falcons charged past South County 9-0 in the semifinals. On Nov. 17, the squad took the Sportsplex field together for, win or lose, the last time.
And they made the most of it, shutting down the Mountain View offense in a 5-0 win.
De Masi and fellow senior Kelsey Rosenmeier scored in the first half, and Cara Witte, another one of the farewell tour, upped the lead to 3-0 in the second. Sophomore Casey DiNardo got the team ahead by four, and Rhea, perhaps fittingly, finished out the season's scoring with her 48th goal of the season, better than all but four other girls in the country, according to Topofthecircle.com. Cox's 156 goals as a team ranked them fourth in the nation.
"It was good for all the seniors to go out with one last hurrah," said Rosenmeier, "and it put into perspective just how hard we'd worked all season."
But suddenly, there was nothing left to do. No more opponents to prepare for. No more games to play. Nothing to do but wait - and take one last look back.
"We had a lot of seniors playing together for a long time," Witte said. "That's something that I'll always remember. This program has had a huge impact on my life."
Beckner, undecided about her college choice, said she didn't expect to continue her field hockey career.
"I think this season was one of my peaks," she said, "and I think this was our best season, for all of us. It's kind of mind-blowing."
But still, the accolades kept coming. Just before they headed home for Christmas break, the Lady Falcons found that a few presents had arrived early.
Witte, DeMasi, Corner, Beckner, Rosenmeier, Versage, and Rhea had made the first All-State team (Lakeland was the only other Hampton Roads squad to make the first team, as Kelsey Smither, Kendell Combs, and Morgan McCaw represented the Lady Cavs there).
Rhea was the third Lady Falcon in four years to be named the state's top player. Swain brought home her fourth state Coach of the Year honor.
But even that still wasn't enough - Rhea became the first Cox player of Swain's tenure to be ranked on the National Field Hockey Coaches Association High School All-American first squad.
"Swain had a lot to do with that," said Rhea, who finished her career with 121 goals. "I'm very thankful for her for putting me up for this. We had so many girls on our team that deserved the award as well. I feel special to be picked out, but there were so many girls that could have gotten it."
To an extent, they did - Topofthecircle.com ranked the Lady Falcons the best team in America.
It's now up to Swain to look toward Cox's future - not that she doesn't have her own share of memories.
"I will remember how hard they worked together as a team," she said of her graduating class. "They were very unselfish, into the concept that it was about teamwork, team attack, and team defense over individual recognition. Their biggest goal was to make each other look good, and that's what they did all the time."
Still, after not losing anyone last season, Swain will say goodbye to 11 "graduaters" this June.
"I'm looking forward to it," she said of 2010-11. "There's definitely pressure on, but there's still some girls with experience on the team. They're going to do what they can to teach the newer girls."
