Wake Forest Bermuda up next for three Heels

The Pan American Junior Championships in Mexico City will be a first-time experience for three North Carolina field hockey players.

For Elizabeth Drazdowski, it's also her first trip out of the country.

For Jackie Kintzer, it's her first opportunity to lead an under-21 team.

And for Riley Foster?

This is the first step in achieving my goals as an athlete"" she said.

The Tar Heels will fly to Mexico City on Sunday for the competition after Saturday's game against Wake Forest.

Held once every four years, the tournament hosts eight nations and their top field hockey players younger than 21. The games will run until Oct. 12.

In the meantime, the rest of the UNC field hockey team will take a shorter trip, to play No.13 Boston College and Yale in Newton, Mass.

Some coaches might balk at it because they don't like to lose their players in the middle of the season" coach Karen Shelton said.

We'll miss them" and it will hurt our team's depth. But we'll be a better team for it. It's too good of an opportunity to pass up.""

And those opportunities will extend far beyond five days of competition.

The tournament also serves as a qualifier for the 2009 Junior World Cup" which will be held in Boston next summer.

And after six former and current Tar Heels competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics" UNC's field hockey program is no stranger to international exposure.

""We like to think we have a developmental pipeline to the national team"" Shelton said.

Kintzer, who was a goalkeeper on the nontraveling 2007-08 U.S. under-21 national team, knows the numerous opportunities within her reach.

This is team-building for the next Olympics in four years"" she said. I'm just happy to be a part of it.""

The U.S. team will face Bermuda" Trinidad and Tobago" and Chile in the first four days of their stay. The round-robin games will be followed by two days of playoff competition.

""When you are representing your country" it's a different kind of pressure than just a college game" Shelton said. They will come back to us as better players and more competent young women.""

The players began a rigorous qualifying process this summer in Boston. A field of about 100 women was narrowed down to a squad of 30.

After competing in innersquad matches at Harvard"" players were selected to round out the final roster for Mexico City.

""We played a lot of hockey and watched a lot of video" Drazdowski said. It wasn't just physically taxing" but emotionally taxing too. We had to be ready every day to compete for that spot.""

But all of the work paid off. The Tar Heels were in coaching camp over the summer when news broke.

It happened in appropriate fashion — on the field.

""Someone had checked the Web site and ran out and said" ‘Congrats you made it"'"" Drazdowski said. ""I was like"" ‘Made what?'""

It took only a leap and a hug from Foster" who came sprinting out of the locker room" to clear up any confusion.

""We started jumping up and down" and we were really excited" Foster said.

Drazdowski said she has tried to imagine what it would feel like to stand on a field with U.S.A. written across her jersey, listening to the national anthem.

She said she can't.

In a matter of days, she won't have to.

It's just a great honor"" she said. I think that's when it will sink in.""

Kintzer" the oldest keeper selected on the team" has competed on a national team. What she hasn't done yet is lead one.

 ""I'm really looking to step in and lead the U.S. U-21 team"" she said. Then I want to bring everything I learn back and do the same here.""

 But for all three players"" this trip is about more than looking ahead the next few weeks. It's about goals they've had since they first held a hockey stick.

""When you're in high school" college is the next big thing Kintzer said. After college" the U.S. team is the next big thing. I can't even explain — it's huge. This had been one of my dreams.""



Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.