Bermuda forward Georgia Harris says the present national side are “the strongest [Bermuda] team that I’ve seen” before they take on NCAA Division II national champions Shippensburg University at the National Sports Centre this evening.

Harris, who played at the Division I level in the United States for La Salle University in Philadelphia, says that Bermuda have a strong blend of youth and experience, as they conclude a hectic summer series before they head to Jamaica in November for the Central American and Caribbean Games qualifiers.

“I think this right now is the strongest team that I’ve seen,” Harris, who is also the team manager, said. “I think this Bermuda team is gelling together extremely well, because you’ve got experienced players such as LaKae [Tavares], Keishae [Robinson], Jenn Beach and Jasmine Patterson playing with juniors such as Taylor [Mullan] and Chrysda [Smith], who have come on leaps and bounds.”

Bermuda have gone 4-1 against Division III opposition recently, including a punishing stint of four games in five days over the past week, but this evening’s game against the Pennsylvania-based Raiders is expected to be a tough, physical test. Indeed, not only did Shippensburg win their national championship last season, but they have also brought over two players who received National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division II All-America honours last season.

Raiders goalkeeper Ally Mooney was a first-team All-American after being the Division II leader in individual goals-against average (0.43) and save percentage (. 894). She broke the SU single-season record for individual shutouts (13) while totalling 84 saves. She allowed just 10 goals in 1,644 minutes. Midfielder Brooke Sheibley was a second-team All-American and is noted for her passing and defensive presence. She had two assists in the NCAA Division II Final Four last season.

But playing such strong opposition — and playing so many games in such a short space of time — should serve Bermuda well when they face host nation Jamaica, Guatemala, Guyana, Panama and Puerto Rico from November 5-12 in Kingston. If they progress they will take their place in the CACs, which will be held in Barranquilla, Colombia next summer.

“When we get to Jamaica, there’s going to be games back to back, we’re going to be exhausted and the heat is probably going to be worse than it is here now,” Harris said. “So I think it’s going to come down to being a more mental game. It’s more about letting the ball do the work than us pushing ourselves to exertion and having us fatigued all the time.”

Harris is no stranger to college teams of an even higher standard than Shippensburg, having played at La Salle, and explains how the opportunities to play at that level are there for young Bermudians.

“That’s what I’m trying to get through to the juniors as well as that playing a sport, especially field hockey, is that there are so many opportunities in so many different countries,” she said. “I was going to go to Leeds University in England and play field hockey there, but my dream was to always go to the States and I think it is important for the girls to know that it can take you places and even for people like Chrysda and Taylor, going to Jamaica will be their first big tournament. It looks good for coaches if they see young players represent their country in the CAC qualifiers and it gives younger players the opportunity to see the different types of players and teams. I think any sport in general, it gives you such an opening into the world and it’s a great thing to do to get involved.

“[La Salle] was a completely different ball game than here. Just the coaching, having practice every single day for two hours, plus having strength and conditioning training on top of that, you’re constantly tired and sore, but I think that makes you just a better athlete in general, because then you realise that you have to push through.”

Bermuda also have some fundraisers coming up.

“Our next big fundraiser is on September 9th, it’s our golf tournament at Belmont and that will be at 1 o’clock, captain’s choice, four people per team, $550 a team, but there will be different events going on throughout the day,” Harris said. “Each team can pay an extra $50, so $600 in total, to take part in all the events. There will be prizes and it will be a lot of fun. And then we have a fish fry coming up on September 15th. Then on October 9th we have a ladies night, wine-tasting, it will be ‘Think Pink’ in support of breast cancer awareness.”

But for now, it is all about Shippensburg this evening. The games starts at 6pm on the NSC’s hockey field.