Katie O'Donnell

Infobox NCAA Athlete
name = Katie O'Donnell



caption =
college = Maryland
conference = ACC
sport = Field Hockey
position = Forward
jersey = 16
class = Freshman
career_start = 2007
nickname = "Odie"
height_ft = 5
height_in = 1
weight_lb =
nationality = USA
birth_date = birth date and age|1988|12|6
birth_place = Norristown, Pennsylvania
highschool = Wissahickon High School, Ambler, Pennsylvania
former_school(s)=
awards = ACC Offensive Player of the Year 2007, National Rookie of the Year 2007

Katie O'Donnell (born December 6, 1988 in Norristown, Pennsylvania) is an American field hockey player who began playing for the University of Maryland in the 2007 season. She attended Wissahickon High School in Ambler, Pennsylvania and was the recipient of numerous honors and awards throughout her high school career. She is the youngest member of the United States women's national team and has become known for her phenomenal stick skills and ability to create. Her attributes were put on full display throughout her freshman campaign as she earned a starting position for the preseason number one team in the country at forward.

High School

O'Donnell contributed from the very beginning, not only making the varsity roster, but helping to lead Wissahickon to the District 1 title by scoring the game-winning goal in double overtime to win the championship. She continued her dominance in her sophomore year and recorded 24 goals and 9 assists in her junior year despite missing weeks of the season to travel with the US U-16 team. In her senior season, she capped off her impressive career by surpassing the 100 career goal milestone. She led the team in goals and assists all four years, having her best statistical years in her freshman and sophomore seasons, largely due to travel with US teams in her junior and senior seasons. O'Donnell received numerous awards for her achievement, earning NFHCA first team All-American honors two times and Player of the Year honors three times by the Reporter. Her awards also include a variety of all-league, all-area, and all-state honors.

College

O'Donnell established her presence early at the University of Maryland putting together a freshman campaign worthy of national recognition. She finished the season with 18 goals and 17 assists leading the nation in points by a margin of 10 with 53 points. She scored goals in 13 of 21 games including 5 multi-scoring games. O'Donnell had 6 game winning goals including one in overtime against then 12th ranked Michigan. O'Donnell earned ACC Offensive Player of the Year honors, the only freshman to ever receive the award. She also earned National Rookie of the Year and First Team All American honors.

International

O'Donnell was selected to the US U-16 and U-19 teams in 2003 and 2004 and competed in tournaments in Holland and Australia. In 2005 she became the youngest member of the US Senior National team and earned her first of 23 total international caps at the age of 16. She scored her first international goal at the Rabobank Champions Challenge in 2005. O'Donnell helped the USA Junior team to a best-ever 7th place finish at the 2005 Junior World Cup in Santiago, Chile. She also competed with the U-21 team in China in March 2007. O'Donnell will be training in California in 2008 preparing to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Personal

O'Donnell is the daughter of Kathleen and Joesph O'Donnell. She is the youngest of four children with twin sisters, Jenn and Kelly, who both played field hockey at Drexel University, and her brother Joey who played lacrosse at Saint Joseph's University . Nicknamed "Odie" by her national team teammates.

References

*1. http://www.womensfieldhockey.com/
*2. http://umterps.cstv.com/sports/w-fieldh/md-w-fieldh-body.html
*3. http://usafieldhockey.com/
*4. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/highschool/11/17/player.profile/index.html