Dartmouth Field Hockey Welcomes Class of 2013

HANOVER, N.H. - Head coach Amy Fowler and the Dartmouth field hockey team will be welcoming five new members to its squad next season as the Class of 2013 comes to Hanover.

“We are very excited to welcome another quality class to our program next fall,” said Fowler. “We have made strides in a positive direction in the last year, finishing in 3rd place in the 2008 Ivy standings and have high expectations for the class of 2013. This class is well rounded and I expect each of these young women to come to campus next fall, prepared to make an impact on this program immediately. Liz and Jenna will help out in the defensive end, while Maya, Lisa and Sam will make their mark on the offensive side and at the midfield position.”

Liz Blanken
Short Hills, N.J./Millburn High School

Before Dartmouth: four-year member of the field hockey team at Millburn and also competed for three years in lacrosse ... two-time first team all-county, first team all-conference and first team Group III North Jersey ... named second team all-conference and third team all-county as a freshman ... earned second team all-conference honors as a sophomore and moved up to second team all-county.

Personal: Elizabeth Blanken was born October 12, 1990 and is the daughter of Roger Blanken and Mary Meyer ... has one brother, Andrew ... was seventh nationally in the French National Exam and was an AP Scholar.

Maya Herm
Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman High School

Before Dartmouth: Three-year member of the varsity field hockey team at Walt Whitman ... won the 4A South Region Championship as a sophomore and was a state semifinalist ... three-time 4A South Region Finalist ... as a senior, she was named the Gazette Newspapers Player of the Year ... NFHCA South Region All-American in her final season ... voted all-state by the Maryland coaches ... was a USFHA Futures Elite and attended the USFHA National Futures Tournament ... two-time Washington Post All-County selection ... named all-metro second team and was a member of the honorable mention the year before ... a first team member in Montgomery County and selected as an all-beltway first team member ... also competed in equestrian while attending Walt Whitman ... named an AP Scholar and earned the Scholar-Athlete Award in all four years at Whitman.

Personal: Maya Herm was born on April 27, 1991 and is the daughter of Stephen Herm and Miranda Spivack ... has one sister, Ariel, who plays field hockey at Haverford.

Lisa Masini
Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron High School

Before Dartmouth: Three-year varsity competitor on the field hockey team and played four years of varsity soccer at Huron ... two-time first team all-state in field hockey and 2 year team captain ... voted the team MVP as a senior and was the team's best offensive player as a junior ... state finalist team in 2008. Selected for the National Futures Tournament three times. Soccer team won the state championship in her junior season ... two-time first team all-district and team captain for soccer ... named second team all-region as a junior.

Personal: Lisa Masini was born on March 8, 1991 and is the daughter of Michael and Cindy Mansini ... has a brother, Kevin, and two sisters, Kit and Anna ... Kit plays field hockey at Brown ... father played football at Notre Dame.

Samantha McPherson
Ventura, Calif./Ventura

Before Dartmouth: Played field hockey on multiple club teams because Ventura High School didn't sponsor field hockey ... appeared for the Camarillo Cougars for three seasons, winning a number of tournaments ... before the Cougars, she played for the Ventura Roadrunners and the Monarcas Field Hockey Club ... competed in soccer at Ventura and was a team captain ... two-time CIF Quarterfinalist ... three-time Scholar-Athlete award winner.

Personal: Samantha McPherson was born on August 27, 1991 and is the daughter of Don and Patricia McPherson ... has one brother ... was a member of the National Honor Society, Key Club and Student Government at Ventura.

Jenna Stearns
Thornton, N.H./Holderness School

Before Dartmouth: Played two years of field hockey at Plymouth Regional High School, before moving on to play her two final seasons at the Holderness School ... was team captain for both the field hockey and softball as a senior ... two-time member of the NEPSAC All-New England Tournament Team ... played for Team Vermont in the National Indoor Tournament in 2007.

Personal: Jenna Stearns was born August 21, 1991 and is the daughter of Harry Stearns and Jan Perreault-Stearns ... has one brother, Tyler ... father played soccer at Plymouth State ... grandfather, J. Edward Perreault, competed in cross country for the University of New Hampshire ... Jenna is an explorer firefighter for the Campton/Thornton Fire Department ... she is a certified NH Wildlands Firefighter and NH Level 1-A Firefighter ... volunteer at the Waterville Valley Department of Public Safety.