Field Hockey Player of the Week: Katrina Clare

Today we kick off our Field Hockey Player of the Week series where we’ll recognize an athlete who exemplifies great character on and off the field. This week’s selection was a consensus pick within our staff: Katrina Clare of the Barker Lady Raiders.

The Junior co-captain is currently the leading goal scorer in all of Section VI with 8 goals through the first two weeks of the season. Her production isn’t that of luck, but absolute dedication to the sport year-round.

A 4th-year Varsity starter as a Junior, Clare was introduced to Barker Field Hockey’s tradition of success as an 8th grader on a team who advanced all the way to the Sectional Finals game. The Lady Raiders have returned to the game each season since; claiming the Sectional Championship in 2016.

Already a fixture in the weight room, Clare joined the WNY Whalers this off-season and was a participant in the USA Field Hockey Futures tournament back in May.

Now an upperclassmen, a bulk of the leadership responsibilities have fallen on Clare and co-captain Ciara Gregoire.

The Barker program’s theme this year of ‘Choose Greatness’ would not be possible without leaders who bought into and exemplified the character necessary to do so.

Head Coach Jeff Costello had this to say about Clare:

“Katrina is an exceptional athlete who excels at field hockey. Her dedication to the sport and her desire to play in college are matched by the confidence she has in her ability, and the enjoyment she gets from playing the game she loves. Katrina has gone from being an athletic 8th grader, playing Varsity, who needed to develop her skills to keep up with her speed and strength, to a very driven junior that is committed year round to working on her game to excel at a high level. She loves to compete and is drawn to the family feel of the team and how her and her teammates rely on others to achieve success.”

When asked recently to sum up what field hockey means to her, she said ‘I think it is the best sport. Nothing is like it. The team dynamic and how we work together and the skill that every player has to have to be successful are all things that I can’t imagine not having in my life. I feel like field hockey really pushes me to be better in every aspect of life, not just athletically.”

On behalf of the entire team at WNY Athletics we’d like to wish Clare and the rest of her team the best of luck through the rest of the season.