Era (n.) — A long and distinct period of history with a particular feature or characteristic.
This afternoon, sometime after 2:30 p.m. Eastern time, a whistle will sound on Drass Field on the campus of Delaware State University.
At that moment, the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 2 final will end. And, win or lose, the scholastic field hockey career for Delmar (Del.) senior Jordyn Hollamon will also end.
Delmar is going for its ninth consecutive state championship today again Wilmington (Del.) Friends School. Jordyn Hollamon, amongst the nation’s leaders in goals scored, is the unquestioned leader of the Wildcats. She has been part of the varsity team at Delmar the last five years (Delaware, being one of the states which allows middle-schoolers to participate in varsity sports). She is amongst the Top 10 all-time in goals scored.
Jordyn Hollamon is the last of four hockey-playing cousins to have worn the Delmar colors since 2016. Those cousins are Jordyn and Josie Hollamon, and Morgan and Maci Bradford. Their mothers, as Jodi and Juli Byrd, were outstanding players at the University of Delaware. But the four cousins, and their teammates, have been nothing short of transformational.
As we’ve posited in this space before, Delmar’s field hockey team has developed an FC Barcelona-esque style of play where the ball does the work. Some of their midfield play has led to goal chances which are more memorable than the actual goals scored. And some of the goals, as you may have seen on our socials, rise to the level of art. Take, for example, this penalty corner which led to a Josie Hollaman backhand goal in the top shelf.
Delmare was the best team in the country during the global pandemic, even as players and teams had to undertake health and safety measures just to even get to games during those years. Indeed, in 2020, the Wildcats had to finish their season in mid-December.
They finished that season with a state championship; the quest for a ninth takes place later today.
