Glastonbury Coach Elected To Connecticut Field Hockey Hall Of Fame

GLASTONBURY, CT — Maureen Perkins, head coach of the Glastonbury High School field hockey program for nearly 25 years, is one of seven individuals elected to the Connecticut Field Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2022.

Elected as a high school coach, Perkins will be joined by:

• Abby Bascetta, Granby, high school player
• Jaimie Orrico, Pomperaug, high school player
• Kate Conover Caulfield, Cheshire/Boston University, college player
• Ashley Smith, Killingworth/UMass-Lowell, college player
• Kelly Lynn Braza, Westbrook, umpire
• Lori Riley, Ashford, honorary

Perkins and her fellow honorees will be inducted at the 22nd annual ceremony and dinner on Sunday, Sept. 11 at the Aqua Turf Club in Southington.

Here is Perkins' biography from the induction program:

Considering how competitive she is, it is hard to believe that Maureen Perkins never played a team sport before she tried field hockey in 9th grade! Like most incoming freshmen, Maureen wanted to do whatever her friends were doing, and before she knew it, she was a star on the field hockey field, moving towards a path of success and prestige that she never could have imagined.

Maureen’s coach at Stonington High School, Janis Ingham, taught her to love the game and she learned a lot from her coach about the values of hard work, team work, and honoring the game. Maureen helped her team to a Class M state title in 1987 and she was the career assist leader until just a few years ago when it was finally broken! She was an All-State and All-Conference player in 1988 and went on to attend the University of Connecticut, where she played for legendary coaches Diane Wright and Nancy Stevens. In her career at UConn, Maureen was a two time Big East All-Academic Selection (1991, 1992) and as a starting back, she helped lead her team to the Big East Championship title in 1992. Maureen graduated from the Honors Program with a BS in History in 1993 and went on to earn her Masters in Education in 1994.

After graduating, Maureen started working at Glastonbury High School as a history teacher and she also took a job as an assistant coach at Connecticut College, working with Hall of Fame coach Anne Parmenter. She never thought she would be a coach, but others saw her potential and encouraged her, and she hasn’t left the sidelines since. After a short two year stint at Conn College, Maureen started coaching field hockey and lacrosse at Glastonbury High School, becoming head coach of the field hockey program in 1999. In her tenure as field hockey coach, Maureen has built her program into one of the most competitive in the state, and her teams are regularly vying for league and state titles. Maureen’s teams have earned 11 CCC Conference titles and 2 state championships (2010 & 2014) and she has an overall record of 291 wins, 64 losses, 21 ties, and 14 OT losses. Her players know that they are part of something special, and they work hard to perform at the highest level on the field and in the classroom.

Maureen has been honored several times during her tenure as field hockey coach at Glastonbury, including 3 Class L Coach of the Year awards from the CT FH Coaches Association. She was named CT Field Hockey Coach of the Year by the Connecticut High School Coaches Association in 2008, and she was a finalist for the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Special Sports Coach of the Year award in 2020. Her most proud honor, however, is the inaugural Lucy Goodridge Sportsmanship Award that her team received in 2010. She was so pleased to be recognized for the way that her team and coaches honored the game, and to receive something named for Lucy and all that she represents to the game of field hockey in Connecticut was truly special.

Maureen is extremely grateful for all of the support she has received from previous coaches, colleagues, and assistant coaches over the years, specifically Kris Cofiell, Trish Witkin, and Barb Startup, who have all been influential and supportive as she has developed her coaching skills. She feels so lucky to have the opportunity to take on new challenges each year with her players as they work towards more success, and hopefully she will be guiding them for many more seasons!