LISBON — Conditioning is a major part of most, if not all, first day of fall practices.

For Lisbon field hockey, the vibes were positive Monday morning after the first 2-mile run of the season.

“It’s awesome; I have been waiting for this all summer,” senior Avia Russo said. “We have been practicing all summer, coming to the field by ourselves and playing around. We did the 2-mile this morning, and it was way better than it was in previous years. Everybody was pushing each other and trying to get to the finish line. We were all working together.”

Spirits were high after the run because of how well the freshman did and because everyone kept each other accountable during the offseason.

“Mostly becoming a team unit, working together and staying in shape, and doing our best at practice and games,” senior Delina Daigle said.

The Greyhounds are coming off a rebuilding season, which they finished with a 4-10-1 record, but they didn’t lose any players to graduation. So there’s a lot of returning experience, and there’s already a team bond heading into this season.

“We do other sports together, and that helps out a lot. And we do a lot of team builders,” senior Mackenzie Theriault said. “We are always together.”

The team bond showed during Monday morning’s practice when head coach Julie Petrie challenged the Greyhounds to not allow more than three passed balls during passing drills. If they did, they had to do more conditioning drills.

During one drill, there were five passed balls. Without hesitation, the players did the conditioning drills.

Riley Holye, in purple, practices a stick drill Monday at Lisbon High School. Half of the team was in a plank position for conditioning while the other half worked on stick skills. Avia Russo, lower right in red, laughs and encourages her teammates while planking. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

“It’s those little things that show — even though we had to do the extra penalty for missing the balls,” senior Chloe McDaniel said. “We did have to the planks for that. We did it with a good attitude, and no one threw blame — we came together as a team.”

Lisbon put a lot of focus the past few months on getting ready for the season.

“Our summer games, they went pretty well,” Daigle said. “Lots of conditioning and hard work was put into the summer season.”

Petrie was pleased with the turnout during the summer.

“They were committed, and they were there,” Petrie said. “I wouldn’t say I am demanding during the summer, but we practice a few days during the week, and we travel to play. But they were there. It was consistently the same kids all summer. Coming back with them today, it was more of a reunion versus a whole new crew because they were there.”

Goalie Sophia Cote said the Greyhounds’ struggles last year were the result of losing 11 seniors from the 2022 squad that reached the Class C South final. She said they started to find their stride towards the end of the 2023 season.

“It was hard finding leadership,” Cote said. “Avia stepped up a lot, and Riley (Hoyle) took a big role in that, too. We wouldn’t have been as good without their support.”

Petrie said she saw the team coming together before its season ended with a C South quarterfinal loss to Winthrop, the eventual state champion.

“I think it takes time to build a young team, but we started to gel more and figure things out, getting better at in-game decisions,” Petrie said. “I think even field awareness, learning the game a little bit better. I think, with that IQ and continuing to work on our skills, we can continue to grow in the right direction.”

Hoyle, a senior, led the Greyhounds’ offense last fall with eight goals and eight assists. She said she’s more prepared for her role in 2024.

“I feel more comfortable because I have learned so many lessons from last year that I can put into this year,” Hoyle said.

Russo said she learned a lot from last season and wants to use that knowledge to help the team have a bounce-back year.

“Definitely, trying to be the best leader, lead my team to success,” Russo said. “Obviously, our goal is to make it to the end. I don’t know, working hard and keeping everyone in check.”

Lisbon field hockey over the past 10-15 years has been a consistent contender — including the 2012 Class C state championship and a regional title in 2014.

“Obviously, we have a rich tradition here,” Petrie said. “Our goal is always to set high expectations and take it day by day.”

Before last season, the Greyhounds were coming off consecutive regional final appearances in 2021-22. The upperclassmen want another long playoff run, especially after last year’s struggles.

“It was definitely a wakeup call,” McDaniel said of the 2023 season. “It was a sign we need to step up and show up. And I think our attitude definitely flipped going into this season. We are on top of it, we are ready, we are prepared, we are ecstatic, we have good energy, everyone is supporting each other, which is major progress since last preseason.”