At Bentley, a real goal-getter

Kelly McGowan remembers well her first glimpse of Mary Rogers. The Bentley field hockey coach was recruiting a goalie at Watertown High. But she couldn't keep her eyes off the talented freshman forward making all the plays.

``I never thought she would be interested in playing Division 2 field hockey," McGowan said. ``I thought she was a Division 1 candidate."

All she had to do was look at the path of Rogers's three older sisters. The oldest, Jane, had played field hockey at Boston University. The next in line, Bethany, took her game to Northeastern. And Catherine, a senior on that year's Watertown team, headed for Maryland.

But, for Mary Rogers, Bentley was home, a few miles up the street in Waltham , offering the perfect mix of field hockey, academics, and family. And it's a decision she said she'll never regret.

``I get the full college experience, I live at school, but we have a very big family and I get to go home when I want," said Rogers, a finance major who is also working on a minor in accounting.

Rogers's brothers also have a talent for scoring goals -- on the ice in hockey. Doug Rogers, who prepped at St. Sebastian's in Needham, is a freshman forward at Harvard this fall. And the youngest sibling, 16-year-old Steve, is a member of the US Under-17 team, and is honing his game in the National Training Development Program while attending high school in Michigan.

Just imagine the miles James and Elizabeth Rogers have logged over the years to follow the growth, and games, of their kids.

Mary Rogers will depart Bentley as the most accomplished Division 2 field hockey player in NCAA history. As a freshman, she burst onto the scene as a second-team All-America pick before receiving first-team honors as a sophomore and junior. At mid week, she stood four points shy of the Division 2 national record of 188 career points, held by former Falcon forward Jen Bunce (c lass of 1999). And she was one goal shy of Bunce's school record for goals, which is 78.

But those are numbers. Dedication is what she brings to McGowan's program on a daily basis.

``Honestly, she tries to better her game every day, she works every day," McGowan said. ``I've been watching her since her freshman year in high school, and it's hard to believe, but she's gotten better each year. She surprises us every game."

Take, for example, this signature moment in Rogers's freshman year in overtime against Northeast-10 Conference foe C.W. Post: ``Mary was new to the league; no one knew what to expect, and we won a double overtime game at Post," McGowan said. ``In overtime, you have your best seven players on the field [ in a 7-on-7 format]. She dribbled end-to-end and put the ball in the net. I was like, `Wow, she's going to be awesome.' "

She scored 19 goals as a freshman, 26 more as a sophomore in Bentley's run to the NCAA championship game against Bloomsberg, and 23 as a junior. This fall, facing more double- and triple-teams than ever before, she had nine goals in 13 games for the 10-3 Falcons, who are ranked second nationally in Division 2. ``She just has great one-on-one skills," McGowan said.

Frustrated with the constant marking on her strong-side shot, she went to work last spring to foil the defensive tactics, developing a reverse stick shot. ``Yeah, I've scored with it two or three times this year," Rogers said proudly. ``It's fun, challenging yourself to get better."

McGowan said that Rogers is one of the top three competitors that she has ever coached, joining Bunce and Carolyn Cahill, now an assistant at Boston College.

``So determined, a fierce competitor. She wants to win, not just every game, but every loose ball, too," the coach said. ``I just want her to play forward, but she would like to play defense, too. She tries to do whatever it takes to help her team win."

And that is the essence of Rogers -- the team comes first.

``As forwards, we put the ball in the net, but I don't focus on stats," she said. ``I wouldn't be able to [ score] unless we had a great team and coaches around me. It's a team sport. All 11 players out on the field play an important role."

Rogers certainly played an important role in the Falcons' 64-18 record the last four years.

As a two-year captain selected by her teammates, she sets an example every day for others to follow.

While the ultimate goal is to make another run at a Division 2 national final, the focus is much more short term.

``I do think that we have an amazing team," Rogers said. ``We just need to stay focused, and take each game and each day one at a time."