Pioneer Ready To Defend Their Class B Championship

The Pioneer Field Hockey team flew under the radar for a good part of last season.. hovering around 5th place in ECIC for much of the year.

This wasn’t a concern for Head Coach Jana Landahl as she took pride in the fact that they were “sneaky good.”

That characterization would manifest itself during the last week of the season as Pioneer jumped from 4th up to the #2 seed in Class B heading into Sectionals.

The team would later meet top-seeded Iroquois in the Class B Championship where a 1st-minute goal from then-junior Olivia Kempf would be just enough to propel the Lady Panthers into the Far-West Regionals.

Pioneer will be defending their championship without three of their top defenders from last season in Aliycia Sapp, Julia Brzezicki (Geneseo) and Bella Addesa (Brockport, All-WNY Athletics Class B 1st team).

Senior Emily Frasier will anchor a defensive unit that hopes to match the level of play from 2018. As a team, Pioneer only gave up 24 goals against, with 11 of those games being shut outs.

Senior Mykala Furman will be instrumental in that initiative as she steps into the role previously fulfilled by Addesa.

Ashley Ameis returns for her senior campaign as a midfielder – a role in which Coach Landahl has appreciated Ameis’ determination to consistently keep their opponent’s left side attack at bay.

While their defense has a new look, their offense from last year remains largely intact.

Both Olivia Kempf (24 goals, 6 assists) and Morgan McAfee (9 goals, 18 assists) return for their senior season with opportunities to set program records in goals and assists respectively.

The 1-2 punch is complemented by fellow-senior Amber Reisdorf who chipped in 11 goals and 2 assists of her own in 2018.

Junior Alyssa Roblee, who battled injuries during much of her sophomore campaign, put in an off-season of hard work that has her on track to challenge for a starting spot in the Pioneer offense.

With a senior heavy team Coach Landahl’s message is simple:

“Make every second count! Every moment is a memory.”

The Lady Panthers will kickoff their season playing host to the Lancaster Legends on Wed, Sept. 4th @ 5pm.

Mark Your Calendars

Speaking of great memories, Pioneer Field Hockey will be celebrating their 50th anniversary during their homecoming weekend this Fall.

Pioneer standout Kelsey (Landahl) Levine will be inducted onto the Pioneer Wall of Fame.

Program founder and coach Valerie Relyea will be honored during the reception.