For its first year in Division 1, the Forest Hills varsity field hockey team had a very successful season with a final record of 8-7-2. FH won the State Championship last year, and this year they fell short to Saline in the State quarterfinals with a final score of 4-0. Despite the loss in the quarterfinals, Forest Hills took 8th place in the state out of the 30 teams in Michigan.

“This season has exceeded my overall expectations,” FHC senior Jayden Bonsall said. “I’m so proud of my teammates and coaches for pushing each other to always give our best.”

One of the highlights of the season was winning against East Grand Rapids. Forest Hills faced off against the Pioneers two times this season and came out victorious in both games. EGR is one of the biggest rivals of the team, so it was a big win for FH. The first game was won 2-0 and the second with an even bigger score gap of 4-0.

Another big highlight was beating Skyline in the playoffs after tying with them in the regular season. The game in the regular season was a tie game of 1-1 and FH pulled ahead in playoffs to redeem themselves with a score of 2-0. This was huge because Skyline is one of the best teams in the division.

“We did very well,” FHC senior Madison Bruno said. “I would say that one of our biggest highlights of the season would be beating Skyline in the playoffs and winning after tying in the regular season.”

This year’s offense performed extremely well; the offense’s scoring was abundant, as well as the shots on goal, and this allowed them to stand out among other teams. The defense had stellar performances as well; FH had a tough defensive line that opponents rarely got through.

“Madison Bruno and Madisyn Bunke were a great midfield duo,” Shaner said. “Jayden Bonsall, and others, really helped to establish a tough defensive line.”

This season’s Forest Hills team had a total of 11 seniors this year. Therefore, they will be losing 11 girls from the team for the next season. However, coach Shaner has faith in the talent coming up to the team.

“I wouldn’t say that we’re losing anything in the upcoming years,” Shaner said. “We have a strong group coming up, not just from within our team, but our middle school program also has some incredible talent that is moving up.”

This year, the team has so much to be proud of. Despite challenging teams from the east side of the state, FH stuck with it and kept up with them. They worked hard on and off the field, and the positive team morale was one of the biggest components.

“We were so deserving of everything we worked so hard for in the past to get where we are now,” Jayden said. “Forest Hills field hockey is more than a team, it is also a great family and community. I will be forever grateful to have been a part of.”

The part of the season that needs the most emphasis is the fact that FH played in Division 1. Only the best teams have the opportunity to play in the top division.

“I would say that I am most proud of how our team stepped up and still worked hard even after going up to Division 1,” Madison said.

The coach is happy with the season as well. The girls played with an intensity this year that was higher than before; they kept up with the other teams and had a great run.

“Looking back at the season I’m most proud of all the girls,” Shaner said. “They’ve worked really hard to improve the level of their play. Moving up a division really pushed everyone to work harder, run faster, and improve our stick skills.”