Mrs. Anne Palumbo has returned as head coach for the 2009 field hockey season.

She left her position as junior varsity coach after the 2006 season due to other commitments and the birth of her first child, Nicholas. With her return came a promotion to the head coaching position.

Mrs. Palumbo decided to return this year because she missed coaching and missed the sport of field hockey.

With her return to the team there were a few new things that she has encountered. For one, the team is now in the Dual County League, whereas before it was in the Merrimack Valley Conference. The DCL comes with new challenges and much stronger competition.

This year the team has also been affected by the number of participants. Since there are fewer field hockey players, the team needs to be aware of every decision they make. They need to stay healthy, stay in shape, and make good choices outside of school. Coach Palumbo stated they "can't afford to lose anybody". According to Palumbo more freshman, and underclassmen now have the opportunity to play and be placed on the varsity team.

To prepare for their upcoming season Coach Palumbo handed out summer packets to each of the girls. The summer packets showed the girls day by day instructions on weightlifting and running exercises to get them into top shape for the season. She also had them participate in summer leagues, camps, and road races.

One of the senior captains, Jennifer Clark, explained how the pre-season has been different from those in the past. She explained how Coach Palumbo had different drills for running, and how this season they were able to work on ball handling. Clark also gave an insight on this years team "We have a lot of good seniors that will lead, a lot of players have skill, and we all know each others strengths and weaknesses".

Coach Palumbo herself is also very prepared. She has a lot of experience from her four years playing varsity high school field hockey at Chelmsford High School, and then continuing on to play four more years at Plymouth State University in Plymouth, New Hampshire.

Coach Palumbo says she looks forward to this season and is "ready to get some wins, and hopefully make states"!