Regan Spencer and Lucy Camlin were locked in competition during a preseason practice, battling to outdo each other in a save drill. It was part of a tryout between the two for Syracuse’s starting goalie spot.

Camlin was on fire, doing the drill perfectly.

Spencer was not. She struggled to put the skills together for the drill and got down on herself. When the drill ended and Spencer began walking back toward the bench, volunteer assistant coach Jess Jecko pulled her aside.

“You embody Syracuse field hockey,” Spencer remembers Jecko saying. “You have the work ethic, you have the talent. This is your job, so go and take it.”

Jecko had been the initial embodiment of SU field hockey, growing up in Central New York and playing for the Orange from 2012 to 2015. She led SU to its first national championship last year, and was asked to rejoin the program this season as a volunteer assistant coach. In her absence, No. 4 Orange (8-1, 2-1 Atlantic Coast) head coach Ange Bradley has had to find a goalie to fill Jecko’s hole in the net.

In starting eight of the Orange’s first nine games this season, Spencer has become that replacement. She has notched 582 minutes in the net for SU, allowing only 10 goals and one loss, a 3-2 double-overtime defeat at No. 5 North Carolina last Friday. The senior is finally getting her chance in the spotlight after playing behind Jecko for three years, and is trying to bring the Orange back to the level that Jecko left it at.

“Jess had so much experience so I felt like I was always under her,” Spencer said. “I was always learning from her, and she made me really competitive. So now being almost equal with her, it’s great.”

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Though Spencer didn’t see any playing time until 2015, she was the leader of extra practices, where girls who had played less than half of each game were required to show up and get extra cardio and game-like experience to keep them fit.

“Last year, I know Reg would step up and make sure everyone was getting their extra cardio in,” Jecko said. “She keeps the growth mentality, and makes sure the team is all growing, even when you’re not on the field.”

Spencer is one of the best runners on the team, Jecko said, which made her such a great leader at the extra practices. She ran with the other players and put in direct work to make the team better.

When Jecko graduated last year, Spencer dropped the reins of the extra practices and moved on to her next venture of trying to win the starting job.

Her competition for the spot came in the form of Camlin, a graduate transfer from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Camlin doubled as a college player and goalie on the Scottish national team.

Most of the preseason competition between Camlin and Spencer came in individual workouts, Spencer said. The two showcased their skills to the coaching staff, sometimes coming to practice an hour early or staying an hour late to get extra reps in the nets.

“We did two or three practices a day and it was just kind of a lot of evaluations, so they could see the decisions we make,” Spencer said. “There’s a lot more touches on the ball.”

As the two goalies battled for the position, Jecko was there working with them, breaking down film and tweaking technical abilities. After every training session, Jecko held separate goalie sessions to make sure the two were growing into the position.

Prior to the team’s 2016 opener at Temple, Bradley said the position was still wide open. She said the two goalies had a “really healthy competition going,” and had been splitting time in preseason scrimmages. Bradley said the coaching staff would take the goalie position “day by day.”

Spencer started the Temple game, playing all 70 minutes and leading the Orange to an 8-0 win. She has started all but one game this season and allowed only 1.2 goals per game, good for sixth in the nation.

“Regan really stepped up for us and has been a phenomenal goalkeeper,” Jecko said. “She’s playing against the best teams in the country, and she’s been coming up in key moments in the last few games for us.”

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Some time between Sept. 12 and Sept. 16, Camlin was dropped from the SU roster after starting just one game, a 5-1 win at Hofstra. Bradley declined to comment, but confirmed that the backup goalie is no longer with the team.

After battling for the position all offseason, Spencer is now the only goalie with collegiate experience on the Orange roster. Bradley has added former SU club goalie Lydia Fowler, but Fowler has yet to see time in a game.

On Sept. 12, Jecko left Syracuse for Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to undertake full time training with the U.S. national team. Before she left, Jecko cried as she embraced Spencer in an emotional goodbye.

It’s the first time since 2012 that the Orange field hockey program is without Jecko in the net or on the sidelines, arguably the biggest hole to fill in team history.

Spencer is focused on her own contribution to the team, and how she can get the Orange back to the national championship in 2016. More than that, to finally be the leader on the team, and to finally get the chance to assimilate into Jecko’s role.

“Remember that Mia Hamm quote, the girl who fell in love with the sport?” Spencer said. “That’s me. I’ve never really had the opportunity to be the mainstay player and start a lot of games, and I’m enjoying every moment.”

Published on September 27, 2016 at 11:49 pm

Contact Matt: mjfel100@syr.edu