A mix of colors fly up and down the field, chasing the ball. A blue uniform emerges from the pack of players, weaving around them seamlessly as she makes her way closer and closer to the goal. Without hesitation, senior Makena Hammond shoots and buries the ball in the net, scoring once again.
As a captain and center forward, Hammond will continue her athletic career playing Division III soccer at Trinity College next fall. Having played on the girls varsity soccer team (GVS) since sophomore year, Hammond will leave behind a strong legacy of diligence and tenacity.
Hammond began playing soccer in kindergarten and currently plays for GVS and the New England Futbol Club. GVS has seen huge successes in the past few years, making it far into the playoffs and even reaching the semi-finals last year. Hammond said the tight-knit community of the team is what helps her perform.
“I think the reason that I’m able to play well and that we’re all able to play well is because we’re so close. I think community is huge; that’s what makes or breaks a team, especially in a pressure situation,” Hammond said.
Junior Mirabelle Keselman has played on GVS with Hammond for the past three years. She said that as a captain and a player, Hammond is always searching to improve.
“She always wants feedback and she wants to know how she can improve on and off the field. She also is so supportive and I feel like, especially since she’s also a friend to me, I can go to her with a lot of stuff that I’m dealing with related to the team,” Keselman said.
Head coach Ben Peters has known Hammond for many years, having coached her since she was in 7th grade. According to Peters, her persistence and hard work are what stand out.
“She’s one of the hardest-working players on the field. She will chase down every single ball. She will put in a tackle on players. She will do anything she can to try to lead and try to get us those goals that we need,” Peters said.
Keselman said Hammond’s dedication and diligence are evident in all aspects of her gameplay.
“Makena’s such a hard worker, and you really see it. She likes to track back on the ball. She’s always working so incredibly hard. So on defense and on offense, she’s really aggressive. You can tell that she’s putting 100 percent onto the field,” Keselman said.
Hammond said she chose to commit to Trinity due to its balance between academics and athletics.
“I loved the atmosphere and I thought that it was a really good community. It’s supportive, but an athletic environment and a good academic school. But they also have good sports,” Hammond said.
When it came to the commitment process, especially for Division III, Hammond said taking initiative is important, and the process involved a lot of communication and effort on her part.
“It was a lot of constant communication with coaches. You really have to put yourself out there and take initiative and go to IDs (identification camps) and make sure you’re always emailing them because they’re not going to reach out to you if it’s Division III,” Hammond said.
As Hammond graduates this year, Peters said that she will remain a model for hard work and dedication.
“It doesn’t matter who you are. Anybody can move up and play varsity. I look back to when she was in 3rd and 4th grade and playing travel soccer. I think she started out on the C or D teams and worked so hard over the years to get where she is now and put in so much time and effort,” Peters said. “I think those stories really resonate with younger players.”
