Royals Athlete of the Week: field hockey player Emily Price scores hat trick

Freshman Emily Price (Hampton, Va./Homeschool) has seen a great deal of success in her young career for the Eastern Mennonite University field hockey team. She grabbed her first hat trick in a contest against Notre Dame (Md.) last Sunday pushing her to a Royals Athlete of the Week honor.

“One of the personal goals I had set for myself was that I wanted a hat trick sometime within the season, which seemed totally unrealistic,” she said. Emily completed the hat trick late in the second half, with both of her previous scores coming early in the first. The freshman also added an assist.

Price saw herself playing a part for the team this year, but did not see herself grabbing the amount of playing time that she has had.

“This year not only am I getting substantial playing time, I have started (all) of the games,” Emily stated. “Being successful as a freshman isn’t the norm and is something that most people don’t experience so I feel honored that I’ve been able to impact my team from the beginning.”

So far this season, the freshman has scored five goals, leading a balanced team attack. With a mix of under- and upperclassmen, the field hockey women hold a balance of veterans and new talent, with many of the freshmen seeing substantial playing time to start their careers. “With having a team that is equally divided between first year players and veterans, it has been an interesting start to the year,” Price said. “As first years, we’ve had to come in and step up as leaders.”

The field hockey team (4-5) travels to Roanoke Oct. 1.