Field Hockey: Coach mines prime talent from 'Golden State'

IU coach Amy Robertson has found field hockey gold in California.\nWith five players hailing from San Diego and nearby Escondido, Calif., Robertson has successfully tapped into a fertile hotbed of budding field hockey talent. In the process, she has transformed an upstart IU field hockey program into not only Big Ten title contenders, but a team to be reckoned with on a national scale. \n"In 2000, the first year of the IU program, we were competing in the Big Ten championship, and I looked at Michigan's roster, the champions that year, and realized almost all of their key players were from California," Robertson said. "I thought what works for them can surely work for us." \nRobertson's recruiting efforts have helped IU rise to No. 7 in the national rankings and build a 12-1 record in only its sixth year of existence. \nRobertson attributes some of this success to the hard work and dedication of her five California natives, including seniors Morgan Albini and Lesley Wiler, junior April Levins, sophomore Haley Exner and freshman Danitra Castro. All five are graduates from two high schools, Scripps Ranch High in San Diego and San Pasqual High in Escondido. \n"These girls have played a huge role in our success," Robertson said. "They're very talented, they've worked very hard and they have a good balance in their lives. They have been pivotal in our achievements as a team."\nRobertson's first score from California was Albini, who Robertson said possessed the combination of athleticism and aggressiveness that she sought for her program. After Albini, a graduate of San Pasqual High in Escondido, signed to play for Robertson at IU, she instructed her good friend and rival Wiler at Scripps Ranch in San Diego to send in a videotape of some of her games to Robertson. Wiler did and Robertson liked what she saw. \n"It was evident that Lesley had a natural field hockey ability, and I knew after talking to her that I wanted her to be a part of our team," Robertson said.\nThe feeling was mutual and Wiler was more than happy to come to IU. \n"I thought the campus was absolutely gorgeous, and I wanted to see the seasons change for at least four years of my life," Wiler said. "I knew Amy cared about my well-being and personal life, not just my field hockey life, and I know a lot of college coaches aren't like that, so I decided I would be happy at IU." \nSpringing from Robertson's success with Albini and Wiler was a veritable pipeline of talent from the San Diego area, as Levins, Exner and Castro all followed their high school teammates to Bloomington. \n"I had never really even thought about IU until Morgan started telling me about it," said San Pasqual grad Levins. "I wasn't even sure where IU was." \nIU sophomore goalkeeper Haley Exner said she couldn't imagine a better situation than playing for the Hoosiers.\n"I think it's incredible that here I am 3,000 miles away from home, and I'm still playing with some of my best friends and teammates from high school, and we're all part of such a great team," Exner said. "I just think that it's amazing"