Gloversville native earns SUNYAC honor
By JAMES A. ELLIS, The Leader-HeraldArticle Photos
One thing Jessica Seren knew when she attended Gloversville High School was that she enjoyed playing field hockey.
That passion continued through a four-year college career at the State University of New York at Cortland. Her field hockey career did not end when she received her sports management degree. Seren stayed on as an assistant coach at Cortland before exiting the program to become head field hockey coach at SUNY Geneseo in 2008.
Seren's love and knowledge of the game is reflected through her players. After guiding the Blue Knights to a school record 11 win, five loss season and a second place finish in the SUNYAC with a 5-1 mark, Seren has been awarded the 2009 SUNYAC Coach of the Year.
"I was very surprised and I think that it [the award] is important, but I have so many people who have helped me," the 2002 Gloversville High School graduate said. "I think that I have a tremendous support system with my family and the people here at Geneseo. So I think this award reflects that, having that support system is a huge part of it. My dad [George] comes to every game and that is a three hour drive for him and the administration here at Geneseo is unbelievable. My first year here I did not know what I was getting myself into. It was a day-by-day thing. The staff here is very approachable."
Four members of the Blue Knights squad, Michelle Milkovich, Stephanie Maisonet, Libby Leroy and Rianna Travers,, earned All-SUNYAC first team honors, Erin Zalewski and Katie Gallo earned second team All-SUNYAC honors. Milkovich also earned second team North Atlantic region honors.
"We lost three senior starters, but we do have the majority of our team coming back, which is very exciting," Seren said. "Recruiting has been good and there is interest, now is is just a matter of solidifying the deal and getting them to pick Geneseo over a couple of other schools that they are also interested in at this point."
The recruiting aspect of coaching at the college level is something that Seren said is "the most important and the most challenging part of my job."
Adding to the difficulty of recruiting is the fact that college and high school field hockey teams play in the fall.
"It is difficult to do a lot of traveling to watch high school teams play because I am working with my team," she said. "I go to the field hockey festival in California over Thanksgiving, which is where I actually went when I played in high school and got recruited to play at Cortland. It is a great recruiting tool and coaches are able to see a lot of the kids from our area out there. It is a good opportunity since it is hard to travel in season, especially any distance. It is a lot easier to have kids from all around the state in one place at the same time. It is competitive and you have to invest a lot of time in the process."
Recruiting players to play for a Division III school also presents a challenge for coaches.
"The bad thing about Division III is we can not give scholarship money for athletics," Seren said. "Because Geneseo is so selective and the reputation that Geneseo has for its academics definitely makes it easier when parents and potential students come in they know about Geneseo and what we are about."
Seren said that while having good skills is important to play at the college level, coaches look for a couple of other factors when recruiting.
"I would say the biggest thing I look for and other coaches look for, is coachability and players with good attitudes," she said. "Skill is always good but you definitely want people with good attitudes and no outside distractions. If I was watching two girls and one was the best skilled player on the team and I noticed she had an attitude, I would take the less skilled player with a better attitude any day."
Being a player who transitioned from playing front line in high school to defense in college has given Seren a perspective as to what her players may go through when joining the Blue Knights.
"It is tough. You are taking someone out of their comfort and out of a position they know," Seren said. "One high school coach might see you best in one position and you come to college and that coach might tell you that they think this is the place where I think you will perform best for the team. You might have to adjust to a new position."
The difference between high school field hockey and competitive college field hockey is the speed the game is played at.
"Speed is the number one difference transitioning from the high school to college game," she said. "There is usually a transition period for high school players stepping up to the college level. Coaches have different philosophies, different strategies, different game plans and techniques. Those are the two biggest differences in playing in college."
Some players also suffer setbacks going from being a top player on their high school team to starting over as a first-year player on a college squad.
"You might be the star of your high school team but when you come to college, every body is a star," Seren said. "These are all players from high schools that the coach recruited and you have to adapt the role that you play on a team. I preach that a lot to my players, that one role is not more important than the other. Whether you are a starter or a non-starter, everyone has a job to do and a hole to fill. It becomes important that people can adjust to that."
Seren has also worked to help develop younger players develop their skills at camps at Cortland, Nazareth and Skidmore College. Last summer she contacted Gloversville varsity coach Jacquie Davies to conduct a clinic locally.
"I tried to organize a weekend long camp/clinic this year at the high school," she said. "Jacquie Davies was a big help putting out flyers and putting it on the school channel but we didn't generate enough interest to make it worthwhile to run. We are going to try getting the word out earlier this year and hopefully we can get a better turn out."
While there are not many youth programs around for field hockey as there are for soccer and football, Seren said she believes that field hockey has the potential for growth.
"I don't see it falling off . . . I only see the sport progressing and growing," she said. "In Europe, it is one of their more dominant sports and is much more developed over there. Right now you are seeing more Europeans coming over here and teaching the game. That is only going to help promote the game and help it grow. You see coaches at camps and working as assists and head coaches and a few players are coming over to play at the Division I level."
Also the return of the Empire State Games will help generate more interest and showcase more of the states top players
"It is not just a good recruiting tool for college coaches, but it is a way to keep high school girls playing field hockey in the off season," Seren, who played two years on the ESG Adirondack scholastic team and one year in the open division, said. "I was actually upset when the open division was eliminated. That gave a lot of college players the opportunity to play competitive field hockey. Unfortunately, there are not a l ot of opportunities."
Reflecting back on her playing days at Cortland or playing for longtime Gloversville coach Don Kaiser, Seren often smiles when she realizes she is a reflection of what they taught her.
"I knew that coaching would probably be the best avenue for me to stay involved in the game, but, being a coach, you see the game from a totally different perspective," she said. "There will be some times I will think back and compare what I am doing to what I was taught. I actually use a lot of those experiences. As a young coach, this is only my second year as a head coach, I do find myself reflecting back on different techniques and styles my previous coaches have had. It is so funny to think about now."
