Time for a philosophy lesson — or rather a lesson in two philosophies.

First comes the coach, commanding and stern, hilarious but only by accident. She’s quick to dismiss any number of her considerable accomplishments — a quarter-century reign as the Syracuse head field hockey coach and a fifth-place ranking on the victories list among active Division I coaches.

Second comes the players, chirpy and delightful, hard-working but only because it comes so naturally. They’re eager to outdo last year’s accomplishments — a runaway Big East championship and a trip to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament.

Together, head coach Kathleen Parker and her close-knit roster of 25 combine to form a harmonic chord of successful personalities. Parker’s sardonic skepticism is the bass. The players’ unrelenting optimism the treble.

Somehow, Syracuse has found the right combination. Even in the shaky world of non-revenue sports, the Orangewomen, who open their season Friday against Stanford, have come to exemplify a notable level of stability. Thing is, that stability comes from two different philosophies that keep each other in check.

Listen to Parker talk about the upcoming season: ‘If we are to step up our level of play, we might need to leave behind some of our old ways, even if they worked against lesser teams.’

Now from senior captain Michelle Marks: ‘We only lost four players, and a lot of the freshmen we had last year got great experience, so hopefully we can top last year.’

Parker dismisses her team’s credentials, ignoring that it was picked to repeat as conference champs. ‘Maybe this year’s team is better on paper than last year’s, but I’ve never seen a season played on paper. If we played the season on paper, I’d call up the Stanford coach and tell her to save her money and not fly here because we’re going to win.’

Meanwhile, the players acknowledge their accomplishments. The Orangewomen have the preseason Big East Offensive Player of the Year (Kristin Aronowicz) and Defensive Player of the Year (Becky Kohler). Already a deep team, Parker and assistant Mary McCracken brought in one of their largest recruiting classes with nine freshmen.

Parker admits she’s a little concerned about the team’s chemistry, a strength last season. ‘All you need is a change of one or two people and the whole chemistry of a team can change,’ she said. ‘I really do believe that the chemistry of a team changes every year, and there’s a lot about it which a head coach has a hard time affecting.’

The players are doing their best to affect it by themselves. They eat together at Shaw Dining Hall. They stroll the quad with greater strength in numbers than the Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Six even arranged their semester schedules into the same class — philosophy, of course. ‘I don’t think there are any cliques on our team,’ sophomore forward Ann-Marie Guglieri said. ‘We’re just one big clique.’

Added Lindsay Peirson: ‘We take care of each other pretty well. During practice isn’t the only time we see each other. We see each other all the time away from the field too, and that’s the way we like it.’

Still, entering the year, there is something Parker disliked. Troubled by a season-ending 6-0 loss to Maryland last year, Parker redesigned parts of her team’s defensive system, adding another back. The move, in part designed to create more turnovers, still has Parker waiting for results. ‘This week in practice,’ she said, ‘we had some seniors on the field who were almost as lost as some freshmen.’

If the players share such anxieties, they hide them well. During a short afternoon practice Sunday, the familiar sing-song of encouragement rang between every shot or save.

The philosophies, once more, are at work. One always downplaying. One always upbeat. The players, hungry to open their season three days from now and defend their Big East title, still haven’t heard a word from Parker about goals or improvements or titles.

As Parker explains it, she stays away from goals because she’s fearful about setting her team up for disappointment. ‘If you don’t achieve that goal,’ she asked, ‘have you still been successful?’

That depends on your philosophy.

Published on September 2, 2002 at 12:00 pm