Versatility can be key in sports, and Megan Goyda, head coach of the Newtown High School field hockey team, is confident her lineup has the right mix and match — to go along with its talent and experience — to make this a successful campaign both in the South-West Conference and in state competition.

"We have a lot of strong athletes this year. We have a handful [of] returners and several newcomers; however, our newcomers have had ample experience on the varsity field. One strength for us this year is versatility. We have a lot of players who can play multiple positions on the field. It will be exciting to see how we can utilize different people at different positions throughout the year. We also have some strong freshmen coming in. I’m hoping to mix their talent with the skills and experience of the returners to build a lot of success," Goyda said.

"As always, our goal is to win an SWC championship. We certainly have the talent and chemistry to do so. We’ve also discussed as a team we hope to make a long run in the state tournament. We moved to Class M this year so attaining success in the state tournament just became a lot more achievable," said Goyda, whose squad had been matched up with FCIAC representatives and Class L juggernauts Staples of Westport and Darien, among others, in previous seasons.

There will be plenty of tough competition this regular season to help prepare the Nighthawks for the playoffs. "New Milford, Immaculate, and Pomperaug are always teams we look forward to playing in conference play. We also expect Joel Barlow to be tough this year. Our non-conference schedule will be tough, too. We play very talented teams like Branford (reigning class M state champions), FCIAC foes Trumbull, Norwalk, and other strong class M teams like Daniel Hand, and Guilford," Goyda said.

New Milford was runner up to Branford in Class M and Immaculate of Danbury captured the Class S title last fall. Pomperaug of Southbury defeated Immaculate for the SWC crown last year. Newtown was the No 6 seed in the conference tourney and fell to No 3 Pomperaug in the opening round of the tournament before losing to Darien in the opening round of states.

"I’m very excited for this group to take the field. It’s evident they have something to prove and want redemption from a very difficult year last year. They understand the damage they can do in SWCs and states and I’m excited to work with them to help them achieve their goals," Goyda said.

Captains were not named as the preseason concluded this week, but the Nighthawks have plenty of players back with experience to lead the way. Key team members the coach will look to on the field are junior midfielder Evelynn Schoen, senior forward Emily O’Neil, junior midfielder Charlotte Grasso, junior midfielder/defender Kaylin Pimentel, senior midfielder Kaitlyn Doyle, senior defender Keira Campbell, junior forward Lyla Bshara, junior goaltender Stella Wasley, and sophomore defender Claire Campbell.

The regular slate begins at Branford Friday, September 11 at 4 pm; the home opener is Tuesday, September 15 against Guilford at 5:30 pm.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.