Morgan Mastrobattisto never stops working at each element of her craft within the sport of field hockey to better herself and her team. Her selfless dedication to the sport and her squad netted her some of the loftiest recognitions by both her league, the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC), and New England.

Morgan started playing soccer and then took up basketball and lacrosse. Yet in junior high school, she got involved with field hockey and decided to drop soccer for it as her fall leg of her three-sport year as a Hand athlete. This year, the defensive midfielder nabbed the triple crown of solo accolades with First Team All-SCC and First Team All-State honors, in addition to being named the SCC Player of the Year for the Tigers, who won the SCC regular season title and made the Class S State Tournament semifinals. She was also selected to the 2024 National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Southern New England All-Regional Team.

“The team camaraderie here is amazing, and [Head Coach Sue Leckey] is always encouraging us to connect with each other,” says Morgan. “Winning those awards were great honors. It was great being recognized for my hard work. But I could not do it without my coaches and teammates pushing me to be my best on and off the field.”

The Tigers actually had a schematic shift on their defensive alignment a year prior, and Morgan was crucial in its execution. She endured some anticipated growing pains with the position to start, though she gained a greater intuition on how to handle the ball for each situation.

“Last year, we started a new 2-3-2-3 formation, and I was part of the backbone of it. You really have to see the whole field, and see who is open,” says Morgan. “I struggled to learn the position at first, but I grew into it. I also started to learn how to dribble and pass the ball better.”

No matter the scenario in a given game, Morgan maintains a great sense of optimism that allows her to excel and overcome hurdles. She is also someone with a mind that is always forward thinking and looks to stay with it until the final seconds disappear.

“I stay positive when I play because I am more confident when I do that, plus I have a great team which lifts me up,” says Morgan. “I always look at the clock to see how much time is left, so I can tell myself that I got this, plus it also helps me when I put the game in increments.”

While Morgan looks to strengthen her accuracy on set plays, she has become a better ball handler–especially in isolation. Her ultimate objective is to be the best all-around player she can be in the game.

“I have worked on carrying the ball along with my 1-v-1 skills, and I feel I have improved on those this year,” Morgan says. “I want to work on my reverse and driving the ball more. I also want to be better at aiming on corner shots towards the goal.”

Leckey explains that Morgan became such a diverse threat with her vast array of skills that she became a disruptor who drew the top priority of opponents’ game planning. She adds that her top honor of recognition from the conference comes with little shock, as she certainly lived up to the title.

“Morgan has been a starter since the first game of sophomore season. She has been a critical reason for our success the past three seasons. She is the solid, consistent presence in the middle of the field that defends ferociously, distributes the ball to the attackers, or eliminates some defenders to progress up-field,” says Leckey. “The player other teams want to disrupt to break down our game is Morgan. Morgan is also the quiet, strong, consistent leader on and off the field for the Tigers. She does everything with her best effort and understated perfection. She was arguably the best field hockey player in the SCC this year.”

Morgan reflects that she actually shared the stewardship duties with her classmates this past fall. She explains that no matter who held the responsibility, they made sure to preach a sense of obligation to the others while maintaining cohesiveness.

“Being a captain was an amazing experience with such a great team around me. We had a small senior class of five, so we all acted like captains,” says Morgan. “We wanted to push others to be their best and hold them accountable. We also emphasized to them that we are all in this together.”

The power of positivity is something that Morgan may not have harnessed had she played for another squad or school. She also unlocked the importance of persistence as she finishes out her time as a Hand student-athlete and moves forward in her life.

“Hand field hockey was very impactful on me,” says Morgan. “I learned so many lessons on how to live life and stay positive. Coach Leckey is so positive and a great role model. The time with this team helped me learn how to face adversity, and never give up.”
Email John Lecardo at j.lecardo@shorepublishing.com