The pressure ticks on. 60 minutes in the cage and Iseul Park has never been more ready. Senior season, State Championships. Her last day playing Pioneer field hockey, and she was going to make it count. Pioneer’s opponent for the 2024 Michigan Division 1 State Championship is the Saline Hornets. Prior to the championship, in the regular season, Ann Arbor Pioneer had beaten Saline in their first game of the season and later tied Saline in their next game. Anything could happen in this State Championship game, so Park was going to bring her all.
Being a goalie, there is a huge mental aspect of the game. Having the ability to come back from being scored on and anticipating the next shot is hard work.
“It feels amazing to save a goal,” Park said. “It’s nice to know that you’re helping your team and also that you’re doing your job right. Because when it comes down to it, you’re the last line of defense.”
The Saline Hornets started the game off strong when Saline player Celia Padot scored the first goal of the game off of a rebound on a penalty corner, giving Saline a one-to-zero lead with 9:43 left in the first quarter. The Pioneers were down, and all of the weight on their shoulders had just doubled.
When Park feels pressure in a game, she turns to visualization.
“If I’m visualizing it, it’s easier for it to come to me naturally, without me having to think about it when the shot does come,” Park said.
Pioneer came back from being down by, scoring two goals only 25 seconds apart from each other, gaining them a two-to-one lead going into the second half. Pioneer scored their final goal of the game with 13 seconds into the fourth period, claiming their championship title once again.
Emotions were heightened in this tense championship game. Pioneer had an incredible season, only losing one game, one-to-two, to Chelsea. This game meant everything to the eight Pioneer Seniors going for their third state championship in a row. The Saline Hornets had seven shots on goal in the state championship game, with only one turning into a goal. Park made a total of six saves in her final high school game, securing her team’s state championship title.
Park will miss her high school field hockey career but also holds great accomplishments for her time at Pioneer.
“It’s honestly kind of devastating,” Park said.“I met all of my best friends through the sport, and it’s been such a huge part of Hhigh school for me for the past four years,“But, I’m really satisfied with the way that it all went, and I think that our last game was a great way to end it off, and I’m just grateful for all the opportunities that I had through the sport, and I’m excited to see what’s to come next.”
