No boys allowed: field hockey tryouts welcome ladies only

Three senior boys were turned away from Blair field hockey tryouts this fall due to county and state regulations reserving high school field hockey strictly for girls.

Seniors Arman Mizani and brothers Tom and Pete Johnson approached varsity field hockey coach Amy Miller about playing for the team after they attended a game last fall.

According to Miller, she had informed the boys earlier that she would love to have them on the team if their skills proved worthy but that they could not tryout without prior permission from the county.

The boys claim that Miller never mentioned any such prerequisite.
When the boys arrived at the first day of pre-season training on Aug. 15, Miller told them they were not allowed to try out for the team. Mizani, who had the impression they would be permitted to play, described the situation as "very misleading."

In preparation for tryouts, the boys practiced and participated in several pick-up games over the summer. Tom Johnson and Mizani spent nearly $65 on equipment and membership in the U.S. Field Hockey Association, at Miller's suggestion, the boys said.

The same day they were turned away by the coach, the Johnsons and Mizani approached Athletic Director Dale Miller, who explained the regulations preventing their participation. He asserted that it would take years to change such a policy.

Mizani was angered by the regulations, citing that girls are allowed to play boys' sports such as wrestling and football. "It's basically sexist that guys can't play," he said.

However, according to Ned Sparks, executive director of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association, the rules are actually in place to combat sexism.

Sparks compared the regulations to affirmative action. To make up for lost athletic prospects in the past, the state, he said, is "giving the girls a little more opportunity." Girls could lose playing time or their position on the team if boys are allowed to play.

Like Sparks, many Blair field hockey players believe their position on the team would be jeopardized if boys were allowed to try out with the girls. Senior Leah Cowdrey explained that she feels threatened by male athletic prowess. "They're naturally better athletes. They would take our positions," she said.

However, junior McKenzie Robinson expressed the opposite, saying she would feel challenged to improve herself if she were playing alongside boys. She also acknowledged that boys' intrusion on the game might upset other girls.

According to Sparks, girls on the team would not be the only ones upset by males playing field hockey on a girls' team. Many parents grant permission for their daughters to participate in field hockey anticipating an all-girls sport, so they "wouldn't be thrilled to hear that boys were whacking at the ball," Sparks said.