During the week of October 17, 2016, field hockey star Krista LaMaina won New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Offensive Player of the Week and also received the honor of National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) National Player of the Week.
LaMaina, junior global fitness and wellness major, plays on the field hockey team along with her twin sister Shauna, junior accounting major and finance minor. LaMaina has been playing field hockey and lacrosse since she was five years old. From Oaklyn, N.J. to Kean University, LaMaina played both field hockey and lacrosse, giving her two sets of new sisters from each sport.
"My favorite thing is the family aspect that comes with the field hockey environment at Kean. I have 24 new sisters that will always have my back no matter what and I will do the same for them," said LaMaina. "With that said, I don't really dislike anything about field hockey."
Field hockey has been a part of her family for quite a long time, giving reason as to why the LaMaina sisters love it so much.
"I chose Kean University to play field hockey because of their great field hockey and lacrosse program and the success they have had with these sports," said LaMaina. "My sister, Shauna LaMaina, really liked the school as well, and we wanted to go to school together to make it easier on my parents. When we had our visit we fell in love with the school."
Krista LaMaina felt honored when she heard she was NJAC Field Hockey Player of the Week. Both her sister and her family back at home felt very proud of her when they heard the news. Her family is very supportive of her playing sports in college, even encouraging her to do so because she felt it kept her on track.
Other than winning this title, her favorite memory with field hockey is when the Kean University field hockey team beat Rowan University in overtime this year. Although field hockey is fun for LaMaina, she has found it to be pressuring at times.
"Yes, time is very minimal when it comes to playing a collegiate sport. Field hockey is very time consuming, especially when we have 7 o’clock away games and we get back at 11:30 at night most times. Then having to go home and have the time to study or do homework. You really have to crack down on the time schedule," LaMaina said. "But this hasn't made me feel like giving up."
She feels her experience here has been great so far because of the many opportunities that Kean University has to offer. She looks forward to gaining even more knowledge on her field in the upcoming semesters.
"I have been on a lot of recruitment visits with my coach and a lot of people have committed after their visit here," LaMaina said. "I just advise others to just know that it is time consuming and if you don’t love it then it’s not worth it. You really have to love the sport that you are playing because with all the stress and pressure that comes along with sports, it’s difficult to manage. And if you’re going to play a sport you have to be fully committed. You need to leave it all out on the field every game or else it’s not worth it. The university pays too much for you to not play your hardest."
After graduation, LaMaina plans to find a job in her field. She sees herself always playing field hockey in the future, possibly coaching it as well.
