.jpg)
WEST LONG BRANCH – Fifth year Shore Regional field hockey head coach Kelly Koenig reached 100 career wins on Oct. 28.
“I love this program,” Koenig said. “I believe in everything that it stands for and I believe in the ideals about making a commitment to the team first, making sacrifices and staying loyal. We understand we have many traditions at Shore and having the players understand and believe in those traditions are bigger than any one person or group of players is what I believe makes Shore so special and why I love coaching for this program.”
Koenig grew up in Pennsylvania and started playing field hockey when she was 10 years old. She fell in love with the sport and played in high school at Methacton High School, about 25 miles outside of Philadelphia. She played collegiately at Monmouth University, where she was introduced to the Shore program through one of her assistant coaches. When an assistant coaching position opened up at the high school, she was encouraged to apply.
“One of my former assistant coaches at Monmouth was a Shore alumni and when the position for assistant coach came open, she had encouraged me to apply,” Koenig said. “I wasn’t from around here, but when she explained the program to me, and I had heard about it while in college and seen players in having teammates at the college level that were from Shore, I was very motivated to look into and pursue the position that was open. It was the best choice I have ever made.”
Koenig took the assistant job at Shore and has been at the West Long Branch school ever since. She served as an assistant coach under Nancy Williams for seven years before taking over the program in 2014.
“It’s a true privilege to be able to coach for Shore,” Koenig said. “The traditions have been well established by Coach Williams who started the program and was here for over 44 years. I think to be a part of something that’s so much bigger than yourself, even as a head coach, you can learn so much through the players and through the program. It makes it so special and I’m humbled to be able to continue my passion through a program with players who are just as passionate about the sport as I am.”
Koenig graduated from Monmouth with a degree in Special Education, and served on the Hawks’ staff as an assistant coach the year after she graduated. It is her love of the game that made the transition from player to coach an easy one. She is happy to share that passion with the student-athletes, and being able to watch them grow over four years is a rewarding experience.
“I loved the sport so much as a player and it was such a big part of my life that it just seemed like a natural transition for me to continue on with that passion,” Koenig said. “Even now, many years later, being able to continue with the love of the sport and make an impact with players and develop relationships with them, really speaks to the power of coaching and why I love it so much. Seeing players come in as freshmen and maybe not really understanding their capabilities and yet through their dedication, they just come to the self-realization of their true worth as an athlete. Being able to see that growth is unbelievable and that’s one of the many reasons why I love to coach and why athletics is such a powerful tool for female athletes.”
When it comes to the tradition of Shore Regional field hockey, Koenig says it starts from the upperclassmen and trickles down to the younger players.
“It all starts from the upperclassmen,” Koenig said. “They all have the experience and understand the tradition. As freshmen, they watch and observe. As sophomores, they start to take an active part. And by their junior and senior years, they understand their actions and what they do on and off the field are what help the traditions continue. We’ve been fortunate that the players believe in those traditions and want to continue them.”
What impresses Koenig the most about her team is the players’ ability to commit to something and work hard to achieve that goal.
“The biggest thing that I’ve seen that I respect so much out of each of my classes is the commitment the players make to each other,” Koenig said. “I think that is the true recipe to help young female athletes find success. When they make a commitment to a common goal and stay true to it, even when it’s challenging and they have to make sacrifices. That is what Shore field hockey is about – working hard to achieve your goals.”
She may not have known it at the time, but back when she was playing at Methacton High School outside of Philadelphia is when her path to becoming a field hockey coach started. Now she hopes she is having the same impact on her players as her high school coach had on her.
“My high school coach was very influential in my career and giving me confidence to pursue field hockey at the collegiate level,” Koenig said. “I think that’s one of the main factors, aside from my passion for the game, was I wanted to have that impact on other athletes that I coach.”
- 2023 JSN Awards Finalists Announced - December 18, 2023
- Sunil Sunder Raj Recaps Day One of State Football Finals With OnNJ (VIDEO) - November 27, 2023
- Mental Health and Exercise: Finding Balance in New Jersey's Fast-Paced Life - November 27, 2023
