At the end of this season, the Ohio State women’s field hockey team will lose four players, including its top three scorers, but the future seems to still be bright.
Three women are playing in their first year at OSU — sophomore midfielder Mona Frommhold, freshman midfielder Emma Royce and freshman forward Peanut Johnson. — two of whom lead the team in minutes on the field.
Growing up and playing field hockey in Berlin, Frommhold received multiple awards. She was named the best defensive back in 2006 and 2007 at the German indoor championships and the best player at the championships in 2006, 2008 and 2010. She is also a member of the U-21 Germany National Team .
As a freshman, Frommhold played in Germany and then transferred to OSU. She said her biggest transition to playing here was combining school and her sport.
“We don’t have a college league, we only play in club. The practice between the classes is different than Germany to here,” Frommhold said.
Since the first game of the 2012 season, Frommhold has stepped into a starting role. She has started all 17 games, is fourth on the team in goals with six and has tallied four assists. She also has the second most playing time on the team with 1,197 minutes.
Frommhold described one lesson she learned from this season so far.
“Prepare to have a lot of practice, not only two times per week,” Frommhold said. “Everyday be prepared to practice.”
Hailing from Kingston upon Thames, U.K., Royce has played in all 17 games this season and following the season opener has been part of the starting lineup. She has scored two goals and leads the team in playing time with 1,203 minutes.
The mental toughness required by players is the biggest lesson Royce said she would take from her first season of college play.
“People underestimate how much work and effort and strength you need,” Royce said. “I’m certainly going to prepare myself mentally for not just playing good teams but playing great teams.”
Coach Anne Wilkinson said the biggest adjustment for the two international players would be the frequency OSU plays games.
“There’s no time to let down … in international (leagues) they don’t, maybe, play three games a week. They’re not used to that grind here … going day in and day out,” Wilkinson said.
When it came to Johnson, a Dayton native, Wilkinson said what she learned was “the physicality of the game.”
The season opener was the only game Johnson has not played. Since then, she has started six games, come off the bench to play in ten other games and has scored five goals and three assists.
Johnson also described the lessons she’s learned from her freshman season.
“How much work you put forth as a whole team, like you have to have a common goal and make sure you are on the same page when you are going into the season and each game, and I think that will carry into next year as well,” Johnson said.