One of the top stories in Hopkins sports last fall was the Hopkins field hockey team’s incredible run, which saw the Blue Jays finish with a 15-2 regular season before going on to win the Centennial Conference Tournament. Hopkins would take that momentum into the National Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament, winning two games and advancing all the way to the Final Four before seeing their season ended against the eventual runner-up Tufts University.
Setting a school record with 19 wins and making history with their first run to the semifinals, it took a team of extraordinary young women to achieve such a feat. A key factor in that run was then-freshman midfielder Maddie Brown-Scherer, who contributed 13 points in her 19 appearances.
Brown-Scherer has stepped into a bigger role in her sophomore season here on Homewood and has made her presence felt right away this season. The Mechanicsburg, Pa. native was a force to be reckoned with this past weekend in the Blue Jays matchups against the Randolph-Macon College Yellow Jackets and the Christopher Newport University Captains. The midfielder launched eight shots on goal and connected on two in a win against the Jackets and one in a loss against the Captains as the Blue Jays split the weekend slate.
For her impressive performance this weekend, Brown-Scherer has been named The News-Letter’s Athlete of the Week.
The News-Letter: Coming off an incredibly successful 2018 campaign, expectations have been understandably high for your team. What has been your attitude and the team’s attitude as you look to continue your success this season?
Maddie Brown-Scherer: This year our team attitude has been to stay humble while also proving to the field hockey community that 2018 wasn’t just a “fluke year” for us. We know that we have to work even harder this year in practices and games to get where we want to be by the end of the season, but now we know what it takes to get there and how it feels.
2018 gave us great tournament-play experience against skilled teams who are competitive year after year. We are working on integrating a talented freshmen class with a group of experienced returners to make for a deep-benched team, which was one of our biggest strengths this year.
On top of all that, we are focusing on having positive energy throughout the season and enjoying each additional day we are able to play together!
N-L: As someone who contributed majorly as a freshman, what has been your focus moving into your sophomore year?
MBS: I have been focusing a lot more on my leadership, especially given the large freshman class we gained this year. It was wonderful to join the team last fall and to be received by welcoming, encouraging and motivating teammates and I want to emulate this same behavior.
N-L: How has the team’s recent success changed the atmosphere around the program, both in the locker room and around the field hockey community?
MBS: I think that our program has caught the attention of not only other collegiate teams, but also prospective players who are choosing where they want to play in college. We have a lot of talented players who are becoming more interested in being a part of this team, which is really exciting for the future of the program.
The atmosphere within the team has completely changed from the past because the program had never reached the Final Four before.
I think a new level of competitiveness and grit budded within the team last fall, and it showed us what is possible for the program in the future.
N-L: What do you feel will be the biggest factor (or factors) for the team as you work to take the next step towards a national championship?
MBS: I think one of the biggest factors is being able to integrate another large freshman class into the team.
We were able to do this effectively last year, so I’m confident we will be able to do it again, but it does take time to develop a new team dynamic.
I think the other major factor is not getting ahead of ourselves. We still need to take our season one game at a time because every game matters, and no team is an easy win. We won’t make it to the national championship if that’s the only game we are thinking about.
