Senior Lindsay Griffith has always had two things in her blood: the NESCAC and coaching. Her parents were both dual-sport athletes at Bates. Her father, William, played soccer and skied, while her mother, Tracey, played field hockey and ran track. William - or Will Da Beast, as he is lovingly called - would go on to coach a young Lindsay in soccer, while Tracey would coach her two former sports on the middle- and high-school levels for 10 years.
Now, Lindsay has caught the coaching bug: She will join the Amherst field hockey staff next season as a Graduate Assistant while pursuing a master's degree at UMass Amherst.
"Before I even went to college, [my mom] said, 'You know, you should teach and coach - it's something that you would be really good at. You're passionate about sports and teaching and it's a really great living,'" Griffith said.
And while the idea may have been subconsciously instilled in her since childhood, Griffith didn't consider it an immediate possibility until January.
"[Tufts field hockey coach] Tina [McDavitt] emailed me the link to the NFHCA posting over winter break and said she thought it would be something I'd be interested in," Griffith said. "I had talked to Tina before winter break about what I wanted to do next, and she suggested I really consider coaching. So I had it in the back of my head, and when I saw the posting at Amherst I knew I had to go for it."
On a whim, she did. Within two weeks of seeing the listing, the next two years of Griffith's life were planned, as Amherst head coach Carol Knerr chose the Jumbo from a pool of candidates across all divisions to help her lead the Lord Jeffs.
"I've seen her play for four years and I've always been impressed with her play," Knerr said. "She's a great overall athlete and clearly has a strong understanding of the game. I also know she's well coached and comes from a strong program. Tina had great things to say about her and I trust Tina's opinion."
McDavitt's confidence in Griffith's coaching potential comes from Griffith's unique combination of field hockey and soccer experience. Throughout much of the country, the two sports overlap in the fall season, but in Griffith's home state of Delaware she was able to focus on soccer in the spring.
"She played soccer growing up and I think that really helped with her visualization of the passing [in field hockey] and where everyone needs to be," McDavitt said. "She is such a smart player and sees the field really well and she understands the game completely. When I'm talking she's nodding her head because she just knows exactly what needs to be done."
Griffith may know exactly what to do when she plays field hockey, but Griffith is the first to admit she may be even better at soccer. Upon choosing Tufts, though, she chose to focus on her self-proclaimed lesser sport.
"Basically, when I was being recruited I was being recruited for both, and talked to both coaches at almost every school I was looking at," Griffith said. "I was burnt out with soccer, and when I met Tina and the team here I knew it was something I had to be had to be a part of. I totally would've played both if I could have."
Griffith credits her knowledge of soccer with giving her a unique perspective on field hockey.
"They're very similar games, so how I see the game developed playing soccer because I started playing at such an early age," said Griffith, who began playing in competitive travel leagues when she was five. "I just had more practice seeing the field and finding open players in that arena."
Unsurprisingly, finding open players became her claim to fame in collegiate field hockey. As a captain this season, the midfielder stepped into the role of quarterback for the Jumbos and led the offense with 10 goals and three assists. Though Tufts didn't finish the season in ideal fashion - the Jumbos lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against NESCAC rival Middlebury - Griffith took on a robust vocal and physical leadership role this year after the graduation of a talented Class of 2011.
Griffith's dominance on the field was recognized throughout the conference and Div. III, too, as she picked up her first All-NESCAC, First Team All-New England and NFHCA Senior All-Star nods this fall, with each organization citing her playmaking abilities as the reason for her selection.
But Knerr saw more in Griffith than just stick skills and a distinctive field sense. Knerr cites Griffith's role as a NESCAC insider as another reason for her selection.
"The fact that she's coming from a NESCAC team helps her understand the demands that are placed on a student athlete at a top-level academic and athletic school," Knerr said. "She will understand what the athletes are going through and will be able to relate to the players and they will have respect for her because they know she's been in their shoes."
In some ways, Griffith still will be in their shoes as a full-time student. As part of her Graduate Assistantship, Griffith will be taking classes at partner institution UMass Amherst. Generally, the program is only offered to those pursuing a degree in sports management, but Griffith wanted to stay open to other potential career plans - namely, teaching - and UMass Amherst obliged.
"I considered sport management, but what I really wanted to do was education. There was no set program for it, but people had done it before," Griffith said. "I chose [higher education administration] because I'm still considering teaching in the future, but it was a program that I could really shape to my interests. ... It allowed me to shape it towards teaching and coaching rather than either-or."
While ecstatic about the opportunity, Griffith recognizes that coaching against her alma mater will be an interesting adjustment - especially because the Lord Jeffs will play the Jumbos at Tufts' Homecoming next year - but is excited to be on the other side of Bello Field.
"I didn't see that coming, but I'm ready to kick Tufts' butt," Griffith said jokingly. "I think it's going to be hard playing Tufts, but I'm at a new school and I'm excited to become a Lord Jeff. I think it's an advantage that I've played against all these teams for four years because I know their style of play."
Is she worried about her historically vocal fellow Tufts field hockey alumni giving her flak from the sidelines?
"We'll let the scoreboard do the talking," Griffith said with a laugh.
