By BRIAN TORTELLA
Correspondent
On X @tortreports
BORDENTOWN — Celeste Conklin grew up repping green and yellow, but when it came time to decide on where she would attend high school two years ago, she followed family history and picked Paul VI.
At the end of her sophomore year, she knew she needed to make a change.
That is, to a familiar place.
“Clearview has always given me that family dynamic that I wanted,” said Conklin, a Mullica Hill resident. “Not to say that PVI didn’t, but I needed something else; I needed to make a change because my happiness was not there. Coming to Clearview really gave me my spark back. I’m back with a team that’s my family, and that’s really what field hockey is about — playing with family.”
It’s safe to say returning to Clearview entering her junior year turned out to be a great decision.
Conklin scored the game-tying goal for Clearview Regional in the third quarter as the Pioneers rallied down from a 1-0 deficit to defeat North Hunterdon, 2-1, and earn the program’s third consecutive Group 3 state title on Saturday at Bordentown High School.
“I sat back with my family and made that decision,” she said. “I waited until the end of the year last year at PVI. (Coach Britney) Ewan reached out, and I think she really pushed me to make my decision to want to play on a state championship team with the family. That goal was a beautiful goal. We had a do-or-die mentality. We were down 1-0. Blair (Eber) sent me a beautiful pass, and it went in the net.
“(Coming back to Clearview) was probably my best decision I’ve ever made in my life.”
Clearview is now only the 12th program in state history to win three consecutive state championships. Normally powered by freshman phenom Blair Eber and senior Rutgers commit Ella Gandy, the Pioneers were able to get on the board in a different way than they’re familiar with. After Conklin’s equalizer, senior Olivia Cherian scored the go-ahead, game-winning goal with seven minutes left in regulation.
“She’s that player who’s able to read ahead. She knew where to be. She knew she needed to be up there for Blair to support. Sometimes we get caught up with either Blair or Ella (Gandy). But we’ve really focused on, and (Conklin) made great adjustments with knowing that we can’t just rely on the fact that they’re going to be able to do it themselves,” Clearview coach Britney Ewan said. “(Conklin) came up through our youth program at Clearview. At the time, I think she and her family thought that PVI was the way to go. Her older siblings went to PVI, so it was a family thing. I think she realized, hockey-wise, that this was the program she wanted to be at, needed to be at. She’s a great player.”
While the Pioneers will return Conklin, Eber, and a talented underclassmen group, they’ll be losing several impact players to graduation, including Gandy, Addison McConnell, Marley Dutch and star goalie Marissa Buck, among others. According to Ewan, the underclassmen group getting the chance to experience playing in the state final will be key to the program’s success next year and beyond.
“To be able to get out here and play like they played on this stage, that’s half the battle,” Ewan said. “I think at the end of the game, they were all overcome with a million emotions. This was the first time for them; this is new for them. The pressure is on. Especially because we are a team that wants to do things for each other. They wanted this so much for their seniors to be able to end their career with three state championships. So that pressure alone can be a lot.”
Clearview looked like a different team in the second half. It was the fourth state title for Ewan, who also guided the Pioneers to the 2019 crown.
“It’s incredible. It was finding the little things that are going to work for them and making sure that we’re always working together as a unit and as a team,” she said. “We made some adjustments, strategy-wise, but also mentally. I think we might be the 12th school in New Jersey history to ever do three in a row. We don’t play into that as a team. We don’t talk about those kinds of things, necessarily. We just focus on our game and our strategy.”
Added McConnell, “it means a lot. We worked hard all season for this moment. We were down 1-0 and then came back to win 2-1. Everyone has just worked so hard in the off-season, and in-season. It just means a lot to finish my high school career with the dub.”
