9/17/2008 - High Point's Keur Happy To Be Back
Getting down to the field hockey field at High Point Regional High School can be an arduous journey for the uninitiated.
If you descend from the hill near the top parking lot, you have to go over two little steep knolls before you hit the baseball diamond. A tricky proposition if you don’t have the proper footwear.
High Point field hockey coach Bev Keur has made that trip countless times in her 25-year association with the team, but Keur’s journey back to the field this season involved more than just navigating a couple hills.
A lot more.
Keur, the only field hockey coach to win a state title in Sussex County Interscholastic League history, had to leave coaching after the 2003 season when she was diagnosed with cancer. But after going through numerous rigorous treatments, Keur, thankfully, is healthy again and back where she belongs---roaming the High Point sideline and teaching the game she loves so much.
Keur is back this season filling in for her former player, Kim Scuderi, who is out on maternity leave. Scuderi, who was a fine player in the mid 1990s, replaced Keur when she became ill.
“Except for teaching phys ed classes, I haven’t been on this field in four years,” said Keur recently. “But it was just like coming home.”
And as we all know from Dorothy, there is no place like home and it just looked right seeing Keur back on the sidelines the other day at the Kittatinny-High Point game.
Keur has endured a lot the last four years, but through the support of her family and friends, and a fierce determination that shines through when she coaches, Keur now just has to go the doctor for regular checkups and she said she is feeling fine.
Keur returned to the field for practice in late August and had to introduce herself to the team. But just like riding a bike, Keur is back in full swing and she said she was raring to go on opening day last week when the Wildcats squared off with Pope John, which is coached by one of Keur’s dear friends, Wendy Morris.
“That was exciting, but I wasn’t nervous and I didn’t have any butterflies,” said Keur, who came into the season with a stellar 243-95-14 record in 17 seasons as the Wildcats head coach. “They (Lions) have a terrific turf field and Wendy is one of my best friends.”
But to be sure, Keur was set to beat her best friend and the Wildcats did just that 2-1 in a steady rain. Since then, the Wildcats have dropped two heartbreakers in penalty strokes to Newton and Kittatinny. But you won’t hear Keur complain. She will just work harder to help prepare her squad for the rest of the season.
“I have been given a wonderful gift,” said Keur. “This is a nice opportunity to coach again. Because I was seriously ill, this is great second chance and I’m enjoying it.”
And Keur has every right to enjoy herself after everything she has been through and I couldn’t be happier that she is back. Keur said she is doing team-bonding activities to show her players there is more to life than just playing sports.
In fact, Keur and Wildcats will be participating in the “Light The Night Walk” on Oct. 4 at Horseshoe Lake in Roxbury. The walk is the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s nationwide evening walk to build awareness of blood cancers and to raise money for cures. For more on the walk, call 908-956-6642 or check out the website www.lightthenight.org.
Keur, who began her career at High Point as an assistant to Mimi Dunn in the early 1980s, is also trying to help her new players take pride in the tradition that is High Point field hockey. Keur said the Wildcats will honor the 20th anniversary of their state championship this season and will have an informal reunion on Oct. 11 during Homecoming.
The Wildcats dropped their first two games of that season before rolling off an incredible 20 straight wins to finish 20-2 after they bumped off Red Bank in the Group 3 final. Keur had many outstanding players on that squad, including the Rheinecht sisters, Patty, Janet and Diane, as well as goalie Sarah Belcher, Holly Valkema, Nancy Monaghan and Jenny Shipley.
“Clearly, they were a benchmark for the program,” said Keur, who also led the Wildcats to the state final in 1997 and 2002. “They established statistical goals and team goals for teams to come.”
And one thing about Bev Keur-coached teams is that they are always ready for the state tournament, no matter how the team played in the regular season, you could always count on the Wildcats to make a run in that states and that is a direct reflection on Keur.
I’ve covered field hockey since 1988, and more times than not, people, especially my fellow sports writers and broadcasters, always ask me how can I stand watching field hockey?
Well, for one thing, if you can’t appreciate the amazing hand, eye, and foot coordination needed to play field hockey, then you just don’t value athleticism. And although the game can be sometimes littered with whistles from the officials, it is still a fast-paced contest and very enjoyable to watch.
The second reason I enjoy covering field hockey is the coaches in the SCIL. You will not find a better bunch of coaches in any league and in any sport around the state. Not only are they great to work with, they are extremely successful.
I can’t think of another sport in the SCIL that has the wealth of coaching experience that field hockey does. Irene Chernati at Wallkill Valley is the dean of the SCIL and was an incredible 285-138-15 coming into this season. In her 22 years she has won SCIL and section titles and led the Rangers to the Group 2 final in 1988.
Lisa Bechtel at Newton is another outstanding coach and has guided the Braves to eight SCIL crowns and an excellent 267-88-9 mark in 18 seasons. Although Vernon has struggled the last five seasons, Stefanie Gastaldello is a tremendous coach and is 213-141-8 and has guided Vernon to six section crowns, five SCIL titles and four appearances in the Group 4 final in her 20-year tenure.
Wendy Morris at Pope John has also coached for two decades and is a great technician and teacher of the sport, plus she is a great ambassador for the game. Morris knows the game inside-and-out and is also one of the nicest people you ever want to meet.
Then there are the “newcomers” like Karen Ruitenberg of Kittatinny and Joanne Hoover of Lenape Valley, who are entering their ninth seasons and have done a great job. Tack on what Danielle Ryan of Jefferson did last year by leading the Falcons to the state playoffs for the first time in 24 years and you can see why the SCIL is so successful in field hockey.
And now with Keur back on the sidelines, it just got a little better.
HATS OFF—A belated congratulations is in order for the Sussex Skyhawks on winning their first Can-Am League title after sweeping Quebec, which had the best record in the league, last week in three games.
Sussex General Manager Ben Wittkowski said he would bring a winner back to Skylands Park when the Skyhawks made nest three years ago and he delivered. By hiring Hal Lanier as the field manager, the franchise gained instant creditability, and along with his fine coaching staff of Dave Cash and Brooks Carey, Lanier brought a championship back to Sussex County.
Kudos to the whole organization. Let’s hope that the people of Sussex County see the commitment the Skyhawks have made to the community on-and-off the field and do a better job of supporting the team next season.
That’s it for now, see you on the sidelines.
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