Heather Howie: Finding a Spartan Home
10/19/2015 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Oct. 19, 2015 
By Kellie Van Maele, MSU Athletic Communications Student Assistant
EAST LANSING, Mich.— Heather Howie used to joke about the opportunity to play field hockey in the United States, nearly 3,500 miles from home, but now that is her reality. The redshirt senior moved to East Lansing from Glasglow, Scotland, in 2011 and has been a valuable asset to the team ever since.
"I started playing field hockey when I was about 11-years-old, but I was also a big track runner," Howie said. "I tried to do both for a while, but I just couldn't do it. At 15-years-old, it came time to pick between the two, and my choice is obvious now."
Although Howie excelled in track, ranking first in Scotland and third in the United Kingdom for the 800-meter, she wanted to continue her passion for field hockey.
"I played in high school as well as the U-18 club team and loved it," Howie said. "I knew that I wanted to play it more, so I figured I would take it out here to the states."
The opportunity came about from one of Howie's former high school teammates.
"An old teammate that I played with at home used to play here years ago, and her coach was Rolf [van de Kerkhof]," Howie said. "I always joked with her saying how fun it would be to play in the states and that got her so excited. She connected me with the correct people, and then I literally got a call one day from coach Helen [Knull] asking to play here. I never even visited before I showed up in August."
Howie's recruiting process was nearly just as simple as that.
"Coach Helen [Knull] was the assistant coach at the time to Rolf [van de Kerkhof], so I was in contact with both of them," Howie said. "Helen came over to Scotland in the winter of 2010. She was coming to celebrate Christmas, anyway, so it was a good opportunity to meet with her. We hit it off so well and that whole experience ended so positively. That's ultimately why I ended up here."
Howie grew up in a family of athletes, but her interest in field hockey was particularly fueled by her sister's involvement with the Scotland Senior Hockey Squad, which she will be joining upon graduation from Michigan State in December.
"Allison [Howie] plays on the national team at home," Howie said. "She has been on the team for six years now and recently played in her 50th match for Scotland."
Howie's parents and aunt have also been role models toward her athletic interest.
"Athletics run in the family, and we are all very competitive," Howie said. "My dad always clings to his bronze medal win in the curling world championship in 1982 â€" he always whips that one out," Howie said with a laugh. "And my aunt, Rhona Martin, was an Olympic gold medalist in curling in 2002."
Being so close with her family, yet being so far from home has taken a toll on Howie. She was especially challenged due to shoulder injuries throughout her collegiate career.
"I've had to have shoulder surgery, and I think that was one of the worst parts about being so far away from home," Howie said. "Sophomore year I had problems with my left shoulder, so I had to get that all fixed to start playing again."
Then history repeated itself.
"Soon after I got my left shoulder fixed I began to have problems with my right shoulder," said Howie. "This was during my junior year, and my coaches suggested that I redshirt for the season to become healthy again. I didn't want to sit out the whole year, but it was something I had to do."
During her redshirt season Howie was also named a team captain, which made it difficult for her to sit on the sidelines.
"Being a captain, it was hard to know that I wasn't going to be able to play, but I learned a lot," Howie said. "I was able to see things from a different perspective and it was definitely the best decision that I ever made. I am so thankful that I am able to play this year."
Howie worked to find different ways to motivate the team even though she was not on the field.
"I was obviously not doing the work at practices and during games, so standing on the sideline challenged me to motivate my teammates, encourage them and coach them at the same time," Howie said. "I definitely took on a different role in the position that I was in."
During her redshirt season, Howie turned to her team for support.
"My teammates were so awesome and took great care of me," Howie said. "They were great about it. It sounds super cliché, but we are a family, our entire team. We are all so close that sometimes I forget I am so far away from home."
Now, in her redshirt senior season, Howie and her team have a lot to look forward to.
"I think, for me, this is the most exciting time of the season because we are finally figuring things out," Howie said. "As a team, we are very unpredictable. Honestly, a lot of the time we don't even know what is going to happen, so I think that is really exciting. We are starting to see a lot more people step up, and it will be really good to see where we go from here."
As a captain, Howie tries to look at each experience, positive or negative, as an opportunity to grow as a team.
"After the games, we always sit down with the coaches and all try to encourage each other," Howie said. "It's more of a ‘where are we going to go from here?' I think as long as we keep encouraging each other after tough losses and try to find the good things in the game, we will be able to stay focused. When we are able to do that, we really have nothing to lose."
By Kellie Van Maele, MSU Athletic Communications Student Assistant
EAST LANSING, Mich.— Heather Howie used to joke about the opportunity to play field hockey in the United States, nearly 3,500 miles from home, but now that is her reality. The redshirt senior moved to East Lansing from Glasglow, Scotland, in 2011 and has been a valuable asset to the team ever since.
"I started playing field hockey when I was about 11-years-old, but I was also a big track runner," Howie said. "I tried to do both for a while, but I just couldn't do it. At 15-years-old, it came time to pick between the two, and my choice is obvious now."
Although Howie excelled in track, ranking first in Scotland and third in the United Kingdom for the 800-meter, she wanted to continue her passion for field hockey.
"I played in high school as well as the U-18 club team and loved it," Howie said. "I knew that I wanted to play it more, so I figured I would take it out here to the states."
The opportunity came about from one of Howie's former high school teammates.
"An old teammate that I played with at home used to play here years ago, and her coach was Rolf [van de Kerkhof]," Howie said. "I always joked with her saying how fun it would be to play in the states and that got her so excited. She connected me with the correct people, and then I literally got a call one day from coach Helen [Knull] asking to play here. I never even visited before I showed up in August."
Howie's recruiting process was nearly just as simple as that.
"Coach Helen [Knull] was the assistant coach at the time to Rolf [van de Kerkhof], so I was in contact with both of them," Howie said. "Helen came over to Scotland in the winter of 2010. She was coming to celebrate Christmas, anyway, so it was a good opportunity to meet with her. We hit it off so well and that whole experience ended so positively. That's ultimately why I ended up here."
Howie grew up in a family of athletes, but her interest in field hockey was particularly fueled by her sister's involvement with the Scotland Senior Hockey Squad, which she will be joining upon graduation from Michigan State in December.
"Allison [Howie] plays on the national team at home," Howie said. "She has been on the team for six years now and recently played in her 50th match for Scotland."
Howie's parents and aunt have also been role models toward her athletic interest.
"Athletics run in the family, and we are all very competitive," Howie said. "My dad always clings to his bronze medal win in the curling world championship in 1982 â€" he always whips that one out," Howie said with a laugh. "And my aunt, Rhona Martin, was an Olympic gold medalist in curling in 2002."
Being so close with her family, yet being so far from home has taken a toll on Howie. She was especially challenged due to shoulder injuries throughout her collegiate career.
"I've had to have shoulder surgery, and I think that was one of the worst parts about being so far away from home," Howie said. "Sophomore year I had problems with my left shoulder, so I had to get that all fixed to start playing again."
Then history repeated itself.
"Soon after I got my left shoulder fixed I began to have problems with my right shoulder," said Howie. "This was during my junior year, and my coaches suggested that I redshirt for the season to become healthy again. I didn't want to sit out the whole year, but it was something I had to do."
During her redshirt season Howie was also named a team captain, which made it difficult for her to sit on the sidelines.
"Being a captain, it was hard to know that I wasn't going to be able to play, but I learned a lot," Howie said. "I was able to see things from a different perspective and it was definitely the best decision that I ever made. I am so thankful that I am able to play this year."
Howie worked to find different ways to motivate the team even though she was not on the field.
"I was obviously not doing the work at practices and during games, so standing on the sideline challenged me to motivate my teammates, encourage them and coach them at the same time," Howie said. "I definitely took on a different role in the position that I was in."
During her redshirt season, Howie turned to her team for support.
"My teammates were so awesome and took great care of me," Howie said. "They were great about it. It sounds super cliché, but we are a family, our entire team. We are all so close that sometimes I forget I am so far away from home."
Now, in her redshirt senior season, Howie and her team have a lot to look forward to.
"I think, for me, this is the most exciting time of the season because we are finally figuring things out," Howie said. "As a team, we are very unpredictable. Honestly, a lot of the time we don't even know what is going to happen, so I think that is really exciting. We are starting to see a lot more people step up, and it will be really good to see where we go from here."
As a captain, Howie tries to look at each experience, positive or negative, as an opportunity to grow as a team.
"After the games, we always sit down with the coaches and all try to encourage each other," Howie said. "It's more of a ‘where are we going to go from here?' I think as long as we keep encouraging each other after tough losses and try to find the good things in the game, we will be able to stay focused. When we are able to do that, we really have nothing to lose."
Players Mentioned
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