Laurie Kerr of Warren Hills Regional High School is the 2011 Express-Times Field Hockey Coach of the Year

FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES

Laurie Kerr has been around long enough to know that talent alone doesn't automatically translate into success.

"I knew we had the talent, absolutely," said Kerr, the Warren Hills Regional High School field hockey coach. "The big challenge every season is getting the girls to believe in themselves."

From day one, Kerr did a masterful job in getting the most out of her players. The season started out with an inspiring 8-0 romp over Hackettstown.

Warren Hills proceeded to win 21 out of the next 23 games and captured the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex championship. Along the way, the Blue Streaks won the Skyland Conference Raritan Division title and advanced to the NJSIAA North 2 Group 3 championship game.

For these accomplishments, Kerr is The Express-Times Field Hockey Coach of the Year. Kerr also won the award in 2003 and 2009.

"She's a person that pushes us to be a better player," said senior defender Jen Hylkema, an Express-Times All-Area first team selection. "She teaches us to never be satisfied with our accomplishments. She gets us to believe in ourselves when our self-esteem is low."

Kerr, who lives in Easton, graduated from Warren Hills in 1987 and teaches Health and Physical Education as well as Driver Ed at the school. After graduation from Warren Hills, she went on to play field hockey and lacrosse at Lock Haven University.

Kerr credited the contributions of assistant coaches Josie Potter and Laura Blackwell.

ALL-AREA FIELD HOCKEY:
• The Express-Times 2011 All-Area Field Hockey Team
• Lucy Pidcock is The Express-Times Field Hockey Player of the Year"We bleed Blue and White," Kerr said. "The three of us work well together. We game plan and stick with it."

Potter feels blessed to have worked with Kerr the past seven seasons.

"(Kerr) has a real passion and love for the game," said Potter, who as Josie Schantzenbach was a standout player at Warren Hills in the late 1990s.

"She's the kids' No. 1 fan, always cheering them on. She does a really great job year after year. It's always been about the success of the team as opposed to her success as a coach."

Warren Hills' success was built around the leadership of captains Hylkema, Lindsey Schott, Sarah Detrick and Whitney Kowski.

"We had an awesome team," Potter said. "The biggest thing we stressed is we were a team, not one or two individual players."

Kerr said there were similarities between this team and her 2009 squad, which lost to Ocean City 2-1 in the NJSIAA Group 3 championship game.

"A lot of the players on this team were sophomores then," said Kerr, who will also coach Warren Hills' fledgling girls lacrosse program in the spring. "Even if they weren't on the field they traveled with us on the bus. They learned what it was about from that standpoint and knew what to expect."

Warren Hills' state title dreams ended this season with a 3-2 loss to eventual Group 3 champion Freehold Borough.

"I thought we had a phenomenal season," Hylkema said. "Coach (Kerr) was always behind us 100 percent. She was so intense, so energetic. She brought that intensity to every practice and every game."

Kerr will miss the contributions of her 10 seniors. Nonetheless, she expects Warren Hills field hockey to flourish for years to come.

"We have a very solid freshman and JV program and a solid feeder program," she said. "I expect to be right back up there again next year."

"Coach Kerr's focus is solely on the development of young women," Potter said. "That's her focus across the board on all levels."

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