Miller named U.S. field hockey high school player of decade

MSU sophomore forward earns honor after posting 148 goals and 135 assists in her New York prep career

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Finding open teammates, zipping passes through multiple defenders and making smart decisions with the ball are skills that come naturally for Chantae Miller.

The sophomore field hockey forward possesses great field sense, quickly recognizing things and make the right play, even when confronted with more than one defender.

Not many players have it, but Miller’s field awareness recently helped her earn the title of High School Player of the Decade according to the Web site www.topofthecircle.com.

“My vision on the field and knowing where to pass next … I think that a lot of times is hard to see,” Miller said. “I’m lucky that I’ve been playing sports all my life, and it’s something I’ve learned during the years.”

Miller accumulated 148 goals and 135 assists in her prep career at East Amherst, N.Y.’s Williamsville North High School and is the only player in recorded high school field hockey history to muster 100 goals and 100 assists in a career.

Her field awareness was apparent as she led her high school team to a state championship during her senior season. Other teams would put multiple defenders on her, only to watch the three-time high school All-American set up teammates for easy opportunities.

When she wasn’t hitting open teammates, Miller was scoring herself, possessing an extraordinary shot for a high school player.

“Her game sense was unbelievable,” said Kris LaPaglia, her high school coach at East Amherst. “She was two steps ahead of everyone else. Teams couldn’t stop her because of her stickwork and excellent shot.”

Miller stepped in during her freshman year at MSU and posted 12 goals and 34 points, which ranked third on a team that already had great support from its sophomores, juniors and seniors.

She earned Second-Team All-Big Ten honors and led all conference players with five assists during Big Ten games, then followed her 2008 campaign with a 24-point season this year as she had to compete for playing time in a loaded Spartans’ scoring attack.

With the departure of senior midfielders Floor Rijpma and Jeamie Deacon, who ranked first and second in the team in goals, respectively, Miller should have plenty more opportunities in the fall to showcase her scoring and passing touch.

“One of the things that Chantae has is hockey awareness, which is not always easy to find in America,” MSU head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof said. “She helped develop herself at the middle school and high school level, and that really put herself in a position to be a great player at the next level, which is Division 1. … We believe that we haven’t seen the best of Chantae yet, which is nice.”

Three other Spartans — freshman midfielder Kristen Henn, sophomore goalkeeper Abbey Huck and freshman forward Jessica Lindner — were named to the Second-Team All-Decade Team. The Spartans were the Big Ten champions in the fall and advanced to the national quarterfinals.

In addition to having great field sense, Miller can be described as someone who quickly picks up on things. She started her high school career as a seventh-grader, posting 22 goals and 18 assists during her first two seasons, and enrolled early at MSU to get a head start on her playing career.

Miller played for a U-19 Futures Elite touring team in Holland and hopes to practice with the U.S. Olympic field hockey team next summer. The 2009 Academic All-Big Ten honoree said she considered playing on a club team overseas but decided to enter early at MSU.

Before starting at MSU, Miller played softball, lacrosse and basketball. She said her experience with those sports helped her in field hockey.

“Basketball helped her with field sense and it helped her get out into space and score points,” said Al Mattei, founder of www.topofthecircle.com. “She set an example and drew a picture for her teammates on how to succeed.”

Miller’s high school team has maintained success in the years following her departure, and LaPaglia said the players still talk about her career at Williamsville North.

Aside from her hard work and dedication to field hockey, Miller’s ability to just play and not worry about her numbers or outside pressures has helped her succeed. Miller said she was unaware of her high school statistical feats until notified of her player of the decade honor by her local TV news station.

“To me it’s not about trying to make the statistics, it’s about having fun with it,” Miller said.

“That’s really why I enjoy playing is because I don’t try to make specific goals like I have to try to go out there and do that.”

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