As school falls back into routine, so does practice for the girls’ 2025 Smoky Hill co-op field hockey season. This program holds students from Cherokee Trail, Eagle Crest, and Smoky Hill. The first of many team bondings, as it gives us time to spend together, that’s not just in practices. This was the St. Louis Gateway Tournament, which took place August 29th-31st in St. Louis, Missouri. Bonding and creating a team with athletes from other schools make this program special.

  Seventeen Cherokee Trail athletes attended this tournament and played schools from all around the country, including DePaul College Prep (IL), Huntington Beach (CA), Kentucky Country Day (KY), St. Stephens Episcopal (TX), and Lindbergh (MO).

  “We had a player a couple years ago who really wanted to do the St. Louis tournament, and I finally convinced a bunch of girls last year, in 2024, to go to St. Louis for this tournament,”  head coach Lisa Griffith said.

  The memories made on these types of trips last a lifetime,

  “My favorite part about going to St. Louis is watching the girls play on water-based turf, which is something we don’t have here in Colorado,” Griffiths said. Water-based turf is something that we don’t have here in Colorado, due to the weather not being the most appealing for turf filled with water. When playing in different states, players are exposed to different rules and play styles than those in Colorado. (Water-based turf is artificial grass that is very dense that requiring watering for its quick, smooth playing conditions.)

  As they have come back to finish off their official season, Griffiths has faced reality on how this tournament will continue over the next couple of years. “We won’t go next year, but probably the following year, or we will find somewhere else to travel to.” As the season continues on the team continues to grow closer and bond on the bus rides and team dinners.