When it comes to planning her future, Hopewell Valley Central High School senior Zoey Lawler has driven down a few different avenues.
“I’ve always kind of switched up careers,” she said. “I’ve jumped from interest to interest. In elementary school I wanted to be an archeologist, or a chemist like my grandfather. He would do the chemistry kits with me whenever I’d go to his house. Whatever my current interest was, I would find a career that aligned with that.”
Since ninth grade, however, Lawler has stabilized her focus.
“I’ve wanted to be a lawyer probably since freshman year,” she said. “I feel like I’ve stuck with that one for pretty long so hopefully that’s the one. If not, I’m thinking economics, business, that route. But I’ve always been really interested in my history and English classes. Especially the law part of it.”
“Right now I’m really interested in business law but I understand that that will probably change,” she added with a laugh.
There is, however, one constant in her life.
“I’ve been playing field hockey for so long,” Lawler said. “I started playing in second grade. I love the team aspect, some of my best friends do the sport. I have great relationships with so many of my coaches.”
It’s easy to see why coaches love her. The lifetime forward not only scores goals, she has all the intangibles.
“She is the girl you want on your team,” Bulldogs coach Alicia Fellows said. “She is the one who’s gonna pump everybody up, make everyone feel included. And her work ethic speaks for itself. She’s ready to play every single day at practice or in games, and she has that go-to-goal mentality which is a huge asset for us in the circle.”
That mindset had produced 40 career goals for Lawler through Hopewell Valley’s 2-3-1 start this season. She blossomed as a sophomore with 16 goals and 10 assists and last year led Hopewell with 15 goals and eight assists.
As of Sept. 21 this season, she was again leading the team with six goals.
It’s not just skill that aids Lawler; it’s that innate hunger to score.
“We’ve been working a lot on attack and you can’t quite teach the attacking mentality,” Fellows said. “You can teach people how to score and what to do in the circle but the drive to want to score you can’t teach. Girls naturally have that and Zoey is one of those girls.”
It helps that she can score in various ways.
“Her game is in the attacking 25,” Fellows continued. “She’s really good at receiving from girls who send it through to her. And she’s also really good at making every move at getting into the circle, and getting the corners and getting the shots she needs. She kind of does it all.”
Lawler acknowledges that she has the ability to get a shot off in any situation and can do some things on her own. But one second after she points that out, she begins doling out credit to others.
“My team definitely gets the ball up there, I rely on them,” she said. “I have that (scoring) mentality but I’m really encouraged by my team. It’s a lot easier when I rely on my teammates to get the ball in the circle. They can help me out, I can help them out, I can help them get it into the cage. I love it when we work as a team to get it up there and I’m proud to be able to get it up there on my own sometimes. But in general I definitely need the team.”
Fellows noted that while opponents often want to double-team the dangerous sniper, that becomes difficult due to some other scoring threats around her, including Jenna Young, a senior captain with Lawler, Kennedy Rotondo and Avery Emmer.
“A lot of our girls have grown up together and look for each other,” Fellows said. “They’re all really close and can help get Zoey the ball.”
Lawler’s entry into field hockey was basically a rite of passage. Her mom, Tara, played at Connecticut College, and her maternal grandmother, Jan, was a coach at Belvidere High School in Warren County.
“It was something I was born into,” Lawler said. “I would say my mom and my grandma got me to love the sport practicing at home, practicing whenever my grandmother came down. Now them or my dad, whoever is at my games, love to give me notes on what I can improve on or execute better. It’s kind of nice, because my dad never played the sport so he has more of an outsider’s perspective.”
Lawler began in a youth league with Melisa Meccage, a former Princeton University assistant. She moved to the Princeton Field Hockey Club in fourth grade, and in sixth grade went to Blue Star, where she still plays.
When Lawler arrived at HVCHS, her scoring ability was obvious.
“You could see it right away,” Fellows said. “That was her game. She was lifting the ball with accuracy and strength and she had the work ethic; everything you need to work with her.”
As her high school career winds down, Lawler takes her role as captain seriously.
“I try to be really supportive on the field and directive when I can when people need help,” she said. “Off the field we’re making sure everyone is having fun, enjoying themselves.”
Lawler is one of the few veterans on a young team, but in mid-September she had high hopes that the squad would gel.
“I’m so proud of how far we’ve come since the beginning of the season,” Lawler said. “We’ve been working really hard, everyone is trying new positions, new formations. We still have to figure out what works but in the month we’ve been playing we’ve made so much progress. If we can make some more improvements we’ll go farther in our tournaments this year.”
When she’s not playing for Hopewell, Lawler still has fall, winter and spring seasons with Blue Star, and she attends sessions that Meccage runs at her home.
“I try to go to as many as I can,” she said. “Those sessions help me as well.”
It’s not surprising, as Meccage has had a major influence on Lawler’s career.
“A huge part of my journey has been learning the game though the international perspective,” she said. “I have had the opportunity to learn from teams and coaches across Europe through Melisa Meccage’s New Jersey select team. It’s been a great opportunity to learn and meet new teammates.”
As good as Lawler is in field hockey, it is only a small part of the Zoey Zone.
With a 3.9 weighted grade point average, Lawler is a member of the National Honor Society and the English National Honor Society. She is a member of the HVCHS Ski Club and is on the board of the Future Business Leaders of America Club. She is also in Service Learning Pathways and has started her own club called Students for Civic Engagement. In just two years, membership has risen to more than 20.
“My classmate and I started it,” Lawler said. “Basically we’re trying to encourage other students to engage in our community more, get involved with community service opportunities. I definitely try to engage with the community in whatever way I can. I work with a local preschool, my grandparents’ church, whatever I can fit in.”
In an obvious understatement, Lawler declared, “I love staying busy.”
She will maintain her breakneck schedule next fall at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts. The school, which has a Division III field hockey program, provides everything Lawler needs.
“I’ve always wanted to play in college,” she said. “I started looking at colleges in eighth grade. I’ve been to a million clinics and a million different showcases to find the right fit.
“But one of my big priorities was absolutely academics. I was looking for a school that would be able to push me far academically alongside with having a great field hockey career, a great team environment, a great coach. I thought Clark really fit that for me. They have great field hockey, great academics and coach (Laura-Ann) Lane is incredible.”
And if, by chance, she changes her goal of being a lawyer, one thing is certain: Lawler’s course will remain steady when it comes to field hockey.
