By Jim Lockwood
Staff Writer

When Rene Paige took over as Pembroke Academy's varsity field hockey coach, she made a change in the team's conditioning routine.

Paige introduced the girls to yoga to sharpen their mental focus and get them in better physical shape.

embroke Academy's Danielle Upham (left) battles for control of the ball near the end of the Spartans. 4-1 loss to visiting Plymouth on Sept. 30. (Jim Lockwood Photo)

"A lot of time (during warmups and stretches) is a time for them to continue chit-chatting and fooling around," Paige said. "I found it's a way for them to focus, warm up their muscles, and get ready to play."

Yoga, derived from Hindu culture, contains various poses to help control the body and mind.

Paige, an active member of a local yoga studio, has her team do poses like the cobra, goddess and frog.

Senior midfielder Jessica Palmer said yoga lightens the mood. Fellow senior midfielder Christina Letendre said the new routine breaks up the monotony of practice.

"She asks us to do the craziest things. We laugh at ourselves," Palmer said. "(Other PA teams practicing at the same time) look at field hockey and say, 'What is field hockey doing?'"

The head coach said when she first introduced yoga, the girls thought it was odd and wondered what she was trying to accomplish.

The Spartans soon discovered there was a method to Paige's madness.

Yoga makes every athlete think about what she needs to do on the field, and helps them play as a team, the head coach said.

Senior forward Tabetha Xavier said yoga continues to help her build strength in her thigh muscles.

After roughly 10 seconds in a specific yoga position, Wavier feels the tension in her muscles, she added. But she has to hold a pose for more than two minutes.

Sometimes, Paige will have the players do the exercises at the end of practice. She'll ask them what muscles need stretching and give the team exercises to target those areas.

Doing yoga at the close of practice helps also helps the team, Paige said, because it gives the muscles a chance to cool off slowly, which lessens the risk of injury.

Yoga helps everyone involved with the Spartans. program, including Paige. She said it helps her relax and stay calm as her players learn what's expected of them.

Several Spartans said they're proud of the improvements the team has made in its passing game.

Letendre said the team is doing a better job of spreading its players across the field and working on finding open passing lanes.

Paige said her players are also much better at thinking about what to do when they receive the ball.

This year's PA roster includes Pembroke's Jill Bacher, Sara Cremeno, Faye Lesniewski, Letendre, Kaitlyn McKechnie, Kelly Moore, Angela Noto, Erin Parnell and Katie Scofield; Epsom's Krys Krycki and Xavier; Allenstown's Steph Blanchette, Kristine Chaput, Cassie Escabi, Allie Juranty and Lisa Swanson; plus Palmer and Alicia Poirier.

Of course, Paige's players - especially the seniors - are also paying particular attention to capping their careers with a playoff berth.

Although the team had a 2- 7 record through nine games, Paige said she believes PA could still make the playoffs.

"I would like it for the girls," said Paige. "I want them to know what it's like to be on a winning team."