ANDREA SLAVEN, a teacher at the Hood School, is stepping down as head coach of the NRHS field hockey team. Slaven successfully guided the Hornets through six seasons including the difficult pandemic season (pictured) and has elevated the NRHS and NR Youth Field Hockey programs immeasurably. (File Photo)
By STEPHEN MARTELLUCCI
NORTH READING — After six years as head coach of the North Reading High field hockey team, Andrea Slaven will not be returning this fall. Slaven, who had her first child, John, back in late February, announced the month before he was born that she was not going to be coming back.
“It was a difficult decision,” she admitted. “There has been a lot of transitions in the past year or so but, while I would like to return to coaching some day, this was not the time to continue.”
In May of 2022, she got married to her husband, Anthony Arone, and she ended up teaching until February Vacation Week this year just before John was born.
Slaven has been teaching first grade in town at the Hood School for 11 years and will be returning to the classroom in a couple of weeks.
“I have a lot of family who will be helping us out with the baby,” she pointed out.
When Slaven took over six years ago, the Hornet field hockey team was struggling.
“I had low expectations going in,” she admitted. “My goal was to rebuild the team and connect with the youth program in town.”
The Hornets have improved in her tenure as they qualified for the state tournament in each of the past three seasons. Last fall, they beat Dedham, 1-0, in the Division 3 round of 32 game before losing to Dover-Sherborn, 2-0, in the round of 16. The Hornets finished at 9-9-1 overall including the postseason.
“I think that we have become a respectable program in the Cape Ann League,” said Slaven. “I am proud of what we have done and I enjoyed the relationships I have made over the years with the players and their parents.”
The toughest challenge for Slaven in her six years at North Reading was the 2020 campaign due to the pandemic.
In that season, there was no state tournament and teams played a limited schedule of only schools in their respective leagues.
“We also had to play 7-on-7 that year,” pointed out Slaven, as the MIAA did not want the normal 11-on-11 that fall. “That was a talented team we had that year.”
Slaven will still follow the Hornets fortunes this fall and try to attend some games as the new head coach will be her assistant last year, Mikayla Panneton. A full story on Panneton taking over the Hornets will appear at a later date.