Girl’s field hockey is the newest addition to the collection of many Boulder High School Sports teams, playing its debut game on August 26th with a 1-1 tie against Kent. The team is off to an amazing start, after tying with a team that holds 13 state championships. Their next game is September 22nd at 4:15 p.m. against Grandview. To prepare for their games which tend to take place on weekends, the girls’ field hockey team practices on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at Angevine Middle School.
In an interview with a current member of the team Annabelle O’Neil, ‘26, she said that “joining field hockey has been a great way to hang out with friends and meet new people.” She went on to say that “as someone who had never played before, the community of girls on the team were very welcoming to me.”
Over a year ago a group of parents advocated for BVSD to launch a Girl’s field hockey program. They demonstrated to the Boulder District that there was enough demand. The program was launched in the fall of 2022 and is now in its second year, and is in its first year being hosted by Boulder High. Now that it has been officially added as a Boulder High sport, The Colorado High School Activities Association is backing the team.
With the demand for the sport growing more teams are giving women the opportunity to not only enjoy the sport recreationally but also competitively. Women’s field hockey originally was played in the U.K. at all women’s private schools. In Colorado, up until BVSD launched this program, private schools were the main competitors in the state. This program is not limited to only Boulder High students but rather anyone from the Boulder Valley School District grades 9-12 with any amount of experience. Even having no experience is ok! In addition to the BVSD team, a rec league was launched in 2020 called the Colorado Bears, providing girls ages 4-18 the opportunity to play Field Hockey in Denver and Boulder.
Over 45 players registered for the Boulder High team and of those, 11 players are on the field at any given time. Despite the immense interest in the sport, only 16% of the people interviewed at Boulder High School were aware of the girl’s field hockey team.
Field hockey is a women-dominated sport in the United States and it was first brought to the U.S. in 1901. When it came over the sea it was not very popular because of a common concern that the sport would take away from a woman’s femininity by encouraging them to be aggressive and competitive. Since then, many things regarding the sport such as the dress code have changed. Historically women dressed in ankle-length skirts with bloomers but now, women play in shorts and a tank top, allowing them to move freely and not have to worry about their clothes getting in the way.
Go support the newest Panthers team and show up to a girl’s field hockey game with lots of energy and school spirit!
