This Hill's tops

LOWELL -- One reason Courtney Hill is at UMass Lowell is that coaches at Northeastern University envisioned her being more of a defensive player than she envisioned herself being.

Therein lies the great irony of Hill becoming the River Hawks' all-time leading scorer in field hockey. A somewhat reluctant defender with a clear offensive vision, Hill became enshrined as an offensive force Oct. 18 with a goal and an assist during a 3-1 victory over Southern Connecticut.

This Division 1 transfer from NU has during three seasons at UMass Lowell -- which have coincided with the River Hawks' rise into a Division 2 power under coach Shannon Hlebichuk -- tallied 34 goals and 38 assists for 106 points.

Hill broke the school assists and points records held by Erin Stewart, who is now a River Hawks assistant coach and remains the UML career leader in goals with 42. Stewart's reaction to Hill breaking her records made Hill further thankful for becoming a River Hawk.

“She gave me a book on little secrets to success,” said Hill, a senior forward from Newburyport majoring in psychology and sociology. “She said it is what her parents gave her when she broke the record. That was nice. I've been looking through it.”

Hill has always looked to her family, starting with her parents Ed and Carol, for such lessons. One big reason she is now at UMass Lowell is related to defense. Her brother Ed was a Lowell Lock Monsters' defenseman at the time Courtney was considering leaving Northeastern after redshirting there as a freshman in 2001.

From 2001-04, Ed Hill played parts of three seasons for the AHL's Lock Monsters.

“I went to all his home games,” said Courtney. “I'm close to my family.”

Ed, a second-round draft pick of the Nashville Predators in 1999, is now with the ECHL's Phoenix Roadrunners.

“I talk to him at least every other night,” said Courtney. “All his hard work and dedication, he's an amazing role model for me.”

Courtney's father, also Ed, is a former University of Vermont hockey player from Tewksbury who was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings.

Her brother Joseph, 18, plays for the Valley Junior Warriors while taking classes at Northern Essex CC.

“We're a skating family,” said Courtney, who also has two sisters, Christie and Caitlin. “The girls all did figure skating from the time we were two years old.”

Hill gave up figure skating in eighth grade. With no girls ice hockey in Newburyport at the time, Hill applied her inherent stickhandling skills to the field.

Her sister Caitlin is now a senior field hockey standout at Newburyport High whom Hill is urging to become a River Hawk.

“My teammates and coaches here are so dedicated,” said Hill. “They put all their heart into it. That's why we're so successful.”

Last Saturday, UMass Lowell clinched its first-ever Northeast-10 Conference regular-season title by defeating St. Michael's College 3-0. The 17-2 River Hawks, ranked No. 3 in the latest National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division 2 poll, earned a bye into the semifinals of this weekend's NE-10 Tournament at Cushing Field.

UMass Lowell is riding a 15-game winning streak -- tying a school record set last year when UML finished 19-3 -- as it seeks to win its third straight NE-10 Tournament title and move on to the NCAAs for the third straight year.

On the same day Hill became UMass Lowell's all-time leading scorer, junior forward Sara Hohenberger of Windham, N.H., set the school's single-season scoring record. She has 19 goals and 11 assists this season.

David Pevear's e-mail address is dpevear@lowellsun.com