ITHACA, N.Y. – The Cornell University field hockey team begins preparations for the 2010 season today as it holds its first practice on Marsha Dodson Field. The team will be in full swing as it prepares for its season opener on Sept. 3 at Lock Haven University.

The Big Red enters the 2010 season with the confidence, experience and depth to compete for the Ivy League title, as head coach Donna Hornibrook will see the largest and most experienced senior class of her six-year tenure take the field. In addition, the team will benefit from the return of seven starters and 16 total letter winners, to go along with eight talented newcomers.

Cornell is coming off a 2009 campaign in which the squad went 10-5 overall and tied for third in the Ivy League with a mark of 4-3 in conference play. The Big Red finished with a .500+ record in the conference for the fifth straight season, the most consecutive winning seasons in program history, as well as 10 or more wins in four of Coach Hornibrook's six years with the team.

“I think we have the senior leadership, balance and speed to be successful,” said Hornibrook. “I really like the composure and experience that we have in the backfield, as well as the explosive potential that we have in our offensive end. Overall, we have a ton of depth and talent, it will just be a matter of finding the best line combinations that will allow us to be successful.”

Midfield
The Big Red's strength should lie in the center of the field, as Cornell returns all of its starting midfielders, including the senior duo of Kate Thompson and Mattie Prodanovic.

A three-time All-Ivy selection, Thompson will serve as team co-captain this year and will look to lead the team from the center-mid position. A multi-faceted weapon with excellent one-on-one skills, she plays a critical role in the organization of the team's press and regularly matches up and shut down the center midfield of the opposition. Thompson also poses a scoring threat with 10 assists and eight goals during her career.

Prodanovic solidified her starting role last season and was an integral part of the Big Red's offense, defense and penalty corner unit. She finished the 2009 season with two goals, including the game winner against Colgate, and picked up four assists for eight points.

Also returning to the midfield will be sophomore Genna Collins. She started all 15 games as a rookie and following the season, Collins won the team's Class of '91 Cup, which is chosen by the senior class and given annually to the player with the most promising future.

While there are several players that could move positions and see time in the midfield if necessary, the coaching staff expects freshman Brittany Thompson to fight for playing time. A four-year letter winner at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School, Thompson was a three-time first-team All-Ivy Preparatory School League selection, after being named a second-team selection as a freshman, and was also a three-time first-team All-AAIS League selection.

Backfield
The backfield has continually improved over the past three seasons and with three of its four starters returning from a year ago, the 2010 campaign should continue the trend. Leading the way will be the Sanders twins – Sara and Stephanie – as well as senior classmate Elizabeth Schovee.

Sara Sanders, who will serve as co-captain of the 2010 squad, and Stephanie Sanders, the team's defensive MVP in 2009, have been stalwarts on the defense since arriving on campus, while Schovee saw her first full season as a starter last year. As part of the 2009 defensive squad, the trio allowed just 5.3 penalty corners per game, the best school average since the stat began to be recorded in 1998.

Also vying for playing time will be returners Katie Laventure, Paige Mollineaux, Alex Robson and Lauren Neal, as well as newcomers Shannon Berry and Izzy Fratt.

Laventure was injured for most of her rookie season, but still managed to see action in five games. She has a great field hockey pedigree, having excelled at Little Flower Academy and as a member of the B.C provincial team, and the coaching staff is hopefully that she will be healthy for her sophomore campaign.

Mollineaux, Robson and Neal all saw action during their rookie seasons and thanks to a solid spring they have all shown they can provide depth for the Big Red.

Berry lettered twice at Saint Francis high school, where she was named second-team all-league and second-team All-Central Coast Section, while Fratt was a four-year letter winner at Clayton high school and was named a Senior All-Star and a first-team all-metro selection.

Attack
Cornell is extremely young at the attack, but returns one of the most prolific scorers in Big Red history in senior Catie De Stio, who is healthy for the first time in over a year.

A two-time Mideast Region All-American and a three-time All-Ivy selection, De Stio enters her senior season ranked third in Cornell history for career assists, fifth for career points and seventh for career goals. Last season, she led the Big Red in all offensive categories, including goals (10), assists (8) and points (28). She also finished the year ranked fifth in the Ivy League in assists per game, sixth in points per game and seventh overall in goals per game.

Fighting to join De Stio up front will be juniors Olivia Boyd and Jess Buckingham, sophomores Kat DiPastina and Molly Casey, and rookies Mallory Bannon, Hannah Balleza, Elly Plappert and Christine Hibler.

Boyd showed that she could have a bright future on the attack after last season, when she saw a significant amount of playing time as her sophomore. She finished the year with three goals, two of which came against Ivy League opponents, including the game-winner in double overtime against Columbia.

DiPastina also saw a lot of playing time last year as a rookie, seeing action in 12 games for the Big Red. She registered two goals on the season and also picked up an assist for a total of five points on the season.

Buckingham was injured for all of her sophomore campaign, and Casey saw action in one game as a rookie, but both will be pushing for playing time this year.

Bannon impressed the coaching staff at camp this past summer after coming out of Hopkinton high school. She was a four-time Tri Valley League all-star, earning league MVP honors in each of her final three seasons, and was the 2008 Massachusetts Division II Player of the Year. Bannon was also named to the both NFHCA Northeast Regional team and the NFHCA High School National Academic Squad in 2009.

A player with great field hockey credentials, Balleza lettered three times at Severna Park School where she helped her team to three straight 4A state championships and earned Regional All-American accolades. During her final two seasons, she was named first-team all-county, first-team all-state, Washington Post first-team all-met and Baltimore Sun first-team all-met.

Plappert is a proven offensive weapon who, as a four-year letter winner at Council Rock high school, graduated as the program's leader in career assists (34) and tied the school record for career points (102). As a senior captain, she led her team in goals as Council Rock won the Suburban One League National Conference championship and advanced to the district playoffs for the third-straight season. She was named the league's Player of the Year, as well as first-team all-league.

An athletic player with a nose for the goal, Hibler was a four-year letter winner at Lafayette Senior high school and led her team to three consecutive Suburban West Conference championships from 2007-09.

Goalie
For the past two seasons, Cornell has enjoyed having two quality goalies that both had the potential to start on any given day. With the graduation of second-team Mideast Region All-American Mel Jue, one of those goalies is gone, opening the door for junior Alex Botte to take over full-time in the cage.

As a sophomore, Botte saw action in eight games and made five starts. She played a total of 385 minutes, made 35 saves and allowed 16 goals for a 3.74 GAA and a .686 save percentage. She also ended the season on a high-note as she posted a shutout in Cornell's 1-0 victory over Ivy League foe Dartmouth in the regular season finale.

Pushing Botte for playing time will be freshman Carolyn Horner. A four-year letter winner at the Peddie School, Horner led her team to back-to-back Prep A State championships. Following her senior season, the Trenton Times named her the Player of the Year, first-team all-prep, first-team all-area and to the Team of the Decade first-team. She was also named the Goalie of the Year, first-team all-area and first-team all-prep by the Trentonian, as well as Newark Star Ledger first-team all-state and first-team all-prep.