PARIS — Trisha Jendrick traveled 3,000 miles from San Diego, California, including driving two hours from Boston to play in an alumni field hockey game as well as honor her beloved former coach, Cindy Goddard.
Nearly 20 “old-timers” showed up to play in the game at Gouin Field Complex against the current Oxford Hills field hockey team and give Goddard a royal send-off on an overcast Saturday afternoon. Goddard is stepping away after 35 years to take care of her ailing mother.
“At first it was to play against my niece (Hannah Jendrick), whose last year is this year, so this is the last year I get to play against her, and then I found out that Goddard was retiring,” Jendrick, a 1999 graduate, said. “She impacted my life and changed the trajectory for it. The fact that I get to be here for her is something that will mean as much to me now as it did then to play for her.”
Goddard enjoyed the turnout, and it allowed her to reminisce with her former players.
“We do the alumni game (every year) and the fun part is connecting with the people you’ve coached,” Goddard said. “This is the fun part.”
Goddard enjoys coaching both field hockey and softball, but she pointed out that they are two different sports.
“You know, they are so different,” she said. “(Field hockey) is hard work. You have to sprint. Softball, to me, is more mental. So, it is a different kind of work. I like coaching anyway. It doesn’t matter. I like being around kids.”
Goddard plans to continue coaching the Vikings’ softball team in the spring.
The Oxford Hills field hockey team had a banner season in 2022, making it all the way to the regional final before losing to eventual state champion Skowhegan, 3-2, in overtime.
But Goddard doesn’t care about her career statistics. She doesn’t keep track of them. She said coaching is about relationships between her and her athletes and enjoying the competition.
“I think I’ve just been blessed to be around a great community,” she said. “It is all about building relationships and having fun. I really don’t care about wins and losses. It is about building a culture of young ladies (who) feel comfortable and compete and they work hard, and they can share it.”
Oxford Hills senior Kaya Joseph said she enjoyed being coached by Goddard and her assistant, Hayly Holman.
“Her and Holman were just like a perfect duo because Goddard was like the tough coach and Holman was like the teacher of the game,” Joseph said. “So, it is definitely going to be an adjustment, especially like losing a whole team last year.
“So basically, we are new team with a new coach, but I am excited for what is to come.”
Oxford Hills athletic director Kevin Ryan will miss Goddard and how she handled her athletes.
“She has been dedicated to the field hockey program for many, many years, not just to the program, but to the kids,” Ryan said. “She is one of those coaches who is involved with the players, whether it’s during the season or offseason, because being a teacher, but also a coach, (she is) reaching out to them and finding out how their day is going in school and how they are doing in school.”
Holman has now taken over as the head coach of the Oxford Hills field hockey team.
“Last year was our 10th year coaching together,” Holman, who officiated the alumni game, said. “100 percent going to miss her. Cindy was a mentor for me and she has become a great friend of mine. And already the preseason has been different without her. Obviously, I am excited for the opportunity to take over the program, but without her, it is a different feel for sure.”
Senior Brynn Bean was sad when she heard Goddard was stepping down.
“Honestly, I was really said,” Bean said. “It is going to be a tough season without her. She, like, brought everyone together, it seemed like. She was just like family to us. It is going to be a big adjustment without her.”
Magili Chapman Quinn, a 1989 graduate, drove from Scarborough to play in the alumni game.
“I was a senior her first year of coaching,” Quinn said. “I only played for her one year. (Cindy) is just incredibly enthusiastic. She would push you hard because she knew you had potential, and I wish I played with her all my years because I think we would have had a great team.”
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