Katie Gleason has a lot of reasons to smile entering her senior year at Paul VI High School.
For starters, she just had her braces removed a few months ago after four long years. Plus, Gleason’s play on the Eagles’ field hockey team has just about everyone bearing a grin. And when the captain is smiling, it becomes contagious among the crew.
“She’s the one they look up to the most,” said Alli Kershner, one of the Haddonfield team’s two head coaches. “Katie just knows how to command what she needs to do on the field. She’s a rock star. She tells everyone where to go, and everyone listens to her. Just an all-around team player.”
Gleason was one of three captains chosen by her peers, along with Remi Nark and Sammie Flynn, to lead the Eagles into the 2022 field hockey season. Paul VI is coming off a 5-15 season, and the Eagles haven’t had a winning season since 2014. Gleason and company are hoping to get the program back on track.
“We had a couple rough patches throughout the years, but I think this year we are going to come out really strong, especially with the seniors we have,” Gleason said. “And we have really strong underclassmen.”
Gleason started putting in the work in the offseason. Not only did she work hard on improving her own skills, she took her role as a senior leader seriously and started to help the team bond over the summer.
“We did yoga together and went out to eat, which really brought us together as a team,” Gleason said.
Each player also brings a postgame snack for each other in a buddy bag, and the Eagles chomped away happily after an opening day 7-3 victory at Cherry Hill East on Sept. 9.
“We want a winning record this year,” Gleason said. “I want to go out with a bang. We got our first win on opening day, and I don’t think we should stop. We just want to keep it going, encourage our JV, and end things on a strong note.”
Gleason is a four-year varsity player who scored seven goals last season as one of the Eagles’ top contributors on the scoring sheet. She is just as good in the classroom, gathering grades in the 90s and above, while taking part in the school’s French Club. She also holds down a part-time job as a cashier and answering phones at pizzeria close to where she lives.
“My schedule is school and field hockey, and right after field hockey I go to work,” Gleason said. “I try to do homework at work when it’s slow so I can get to sleep at a normal time. I try to keep confidence and a positive mindset.”
Another activity for Gleason is the Paul VI’s Samaritan Club. In the past, the club has volunteered at soup kitchens/homeless shelters such as the St. Francis Inn in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia. “We help make bags for the poor and plan clothing drives and food drives,” she explained. “I enjoy giving back.”
Gleason is undecided where she will attend college but plans to pursue something in the medical field. “I’m thinking orthopedic, not so much a surgeon but a physician – or maybe dental,” she said. “I love learning about the body and bones.”
Either way, she’ll be helping other people to smile.
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