There’s only one word to describe senior field hockey captain Molly McConaughey, and that word is bubbly. Whether it’s playing on the field hockey team or walking the halls between classes, McConaughey is always smiling and making the people around her laugh.

    McConaughey has been playing on the varsity field hockey team since her sophomore year in high school. Even as a freshman, she proved to be a promising player to her coaches. During the Patriot League field hockey tournament that year, McConaughey was pulled up to the varsity team and proved herself to the former head coach, Ms. Bird, who brought her permanently onto the varsity team her sophomore year. In addition to playing varsity field hockey for three years, McConaughey has been involved with club field hockey for a total of four years.

  “I play for Lead the Way Field Hockey, which is based in Rhode Island. It’s kind of a hike but it’s a really good team and my teammates have helped me so much over the past couple years,” said McConaughey. After years of practice, McConaughey has grown tremendously as a field hockey player and can now play almost every position on the field.

    “I admire her positive attitude both on and off the field… Instead of giving criticism, she always offers advice to help us improve our skills” said Sabine Adorney, a freshman field hockey player. Playing on the varsity field hockey team, with McConaughey as one of her captains, Adorney has thoroughly enjoyed her first season at the high school. In addition to helping Adorney and other freshman players transition smoothly into the high school, McConaughey has played a major role in making them feel like an integral part of the team and giving them helpful tips on the field.

 “She taught the team the importance of never giving up on our goals and she taught me about what it means to be a great leader and role model,” said junior Emma LaBreck. By providing guidance to incoming varsity players, McConaughey was able to motivate her teammates to work hard each and every practice. Not only did this help to improve the team as a whole, but the bond between players was immense by the end of the season.

    According to Ms. Paster, the new varsity field hockey coach, she couldn’t have asked for a better team, not to mention, leaders such as McConaughey. “On the field Molly was willing to play any position… depending on where we needed her.  Off the field Molly’s leadership really stood out; she helped players in any way she could,” said Coach Paster.

    Although she doesn’t have a main position, McConaughey used to play defense (her favorite position) last year under Coach Bird and got switched to right midfield about halfway through the season. During the captain’s last season at the high school, Coach Paster would put her on forward and occasionally assign her to midfield, knowing that she could rely on McConaughey to perform well on all parts of the field.

    Playing her last game against Norwell was a tough, yet thoroughly rewarding experience. When the final whistle blew to signal the end of the game, all the underclassman ran over and hugged the seniors, including McConaughey, who had served as an inspiration to all her teammates.

    Claiming that this year’s field hockey season was a great way to end her high school career, McConaughey recalls how different the team was in the beginning. Although it seemed like a whole new team, McConaughey loved working with all the players and “being someone that they could could look up to… and the whole program could look up to.”

    “I’d say give it your all! Work hard and absolutely take advantage of playing in the offseason, but mostly, don’t forget to have fun with it” said McConaughey, with an air of wisdom behind her words. Not only did she stay true to her own principles throughout each and every field hockey season, but her positive attitude was absolutely contagious, causing other players to strive for constant improvement.

    “Next year we are going to miss Molly’s presence on the team,” said Coach Paster. There’s no doubt that many of the players will agree with their coach, especially underclassmen who had just joined the team. But hopefully, McConaughey’s absence will encourage other people to step up to the plate and strive for excellence, just as McConaughey had during her final years at Scituate High.