Photo credit: Courtney Ryder | The Breeze
Junior midfielder Emily Harrison was a force to be reckoned with on the field for JMU field hockey this season. Harrison scored three goals and put up a .750 shots-on-goal percentage — one of the highest percentages on the team.
“My job is to go after the ball,” Harrison said. “I think a lot of it comes from the style of play that my teammates help support me with and just the grittiness of JMU field hockey. I think that’s within all of us.”
JMU claimed its second consecutive regular season title this year after going undefeated in conference play and finishing 11-6. On top of winning the regular season title, the Dukes claimed the No. 1 seed in the upcoming CAA Field Hockey Championship tournament in Newark, Delaware.
“I feel like we’ve had moments of brilliance,” head coach Christy Morgan said. “Every time we play the game, we want to get better — we’ve been doing that, [and] we’re at a really good space right now.”
JMU’s success this season was a team effort, Morgan and multiple players said. The team racked up a combined 48 goals and were only shut out three times while holding their opponents to a combined 25 goals. Harrison said the team grew closer on and off the field this season, which she said helped them win games during the season and will hopefully lead to continued success in the CAA championship.
“We’ve grown in our confidence throughout the entire season,” Harrison said. “There’s just that element of trust behind that — knowing that we can win the championship and we all have each other’s back.”
On top of her goals scored, Harrison had four assists and played 856 minutes. Morgan said Harrison is a player she can rely on to be consistent and efficient every time she steps on the field — regardless of whether it’s at practice or in a game.
“She creates greatness out of craziness,” Morgan said. “She’s good on the defensive end with pressing, she’s good on the attacking end with finishing. She has a broad spectrum of skills, and we’re just excited that she’s a part of this unit.”
Those who watch a JMU field hockey game will likely notice Harrison’s speed and presence all over the turf, moving from point A to point B and pressuring opponents. Harrison uses her whole body when pressuring opponents and defending the ball, often lunging and throwing her body around in an attempt to block a pass or shot.
“[My main goal is] fulfilling my role and doing my responsibilities because I’m in the front of the field, people fall back behind me, so if I’m doing what I need to be doing then people can adjust accordingly,” Harrison said. “That’s kind of my mentality every game.”
Morgan said Harrison’s speed is one of her main contributions to the team. She also said Harrison’s mental toughness has grown, which has helped her become a better player.
“She contributes with her speed … She uses her athleticism to be a great field hockey player,” Morgan said. “She’s one of the many [consistent players] that I think has really risen to the occasion — [she] loves to play high-performance hockey, and she’s become a high-performance player.”
Harrison started playing field hockey around 7 years old at her local YMCA with a group of friends and fell in love with the sport. Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, Harrison accumulated many awards and recognitions, including being a two-time Kentucky Select First Team member and all-district tournament member in high school. Harrison said it hit close to home when the Dukes played Louisville on Oct. 24.
“It definitely fired me up,” Harrison said. “It kind of gets back to that rivalry feeling. I played some of those girls in high school, so it made me kind of feel like I was almost in high school again.”
When going through the recruiting process, Harrison said the culture and environment of JMU made her want to come to Harrisonburg because it told her that her teammates and coaches would want what’s best for her. Taryn Mayer, a freshman defender, said she had a similar recruiting experience and wanted to come to JMU for the same reasons.
“No other school [was] really like the program that we have here,” Mayer said. “It just felt so natural and so easy to play, especially with the girls on the team; they just welcomed me with such open arms.”
As the team prepares for the CAA tournament this weekend, Morgan said the Dukes are focusing on connections and playing their style of field hockey, which she says is “really aggressive and emotional.” Morgan said she expects Harrison to come out and be her best self during the CAA tournament.
“The great thing about Emily is she’s in a space where she gets comfortable with the uncomfortable, and then we get her uncomfortable again,” Morgan said. “There’s so much growth for her still to be had.”
JMU will face No. 4 Northeastern in the CAA semifinals Nov. 5 at 1 p.m. The Dukes defeated the Huskies 3-2 in their regular season matchup, a game that was full of intensity and physicality that’s likely to carry over into the higher stakes rematch.
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