‘They are so focused on getting better, it makes me emotional on the field,’ Susquehannock field hockey head coach Jason Mulder
Susquehannock field hockey won back-to-back YAIAA championships, now look to the first round of the 2025 District 3 Class 2A tournament. Photos: Bob Benscoter
Northern York has historically been the sole York County girls field hockey team to reach the end of the District 3 and PIAA tournaments.
Other programs, like Dallastown in Class 3A in 2021, have made it out of the first round of the District 3 tournament but the Wildcats ultimately fell to Lower Dauphin in both district and state play.
Bermudian Springs, a York Adams Interscholastic Athletic Association team from Adams County, also saw District 3 Class 1A quarterfinal appearances in 2017 and a first-round state berth in 2018.
The YAIAA hasn’t been able to break the barrier between them and opponents either 60 minutes north or east of them.
For the past three seasons, the Susquehannock girls field hockey team has faced early exits from the District 3 Class 2A tournament, losing to New Oxford (Adams County) in 2022, Red Land (York County) in 2023, and Hershey (Dauphin County) in 2024.
However, the team has shown signs of significant promise of becoming another York County contender. They were also ranked higher than Red Land and New Oxford the past two seasons in the first round.
Northern York finished with silver medals in both the 2024 District 3 Class 2A and 2024 PIAA Class 2A state tournaments last season. Northern, positioned at No. 5 in the first round of the 2025 District 3 Class 2A tournament, is still bearing down on trying to earn gold in 2025.
Susquehannock, located in southern York County, competes in the YAIAA, a different conference than Northern York's Mid-Penn, which regularly sends teams to both the District 3 and PIAA state tournaments across all classifications (A, AA, and AAA).
"Part of the reason is the level of competition," Susquehannock head field hockey coach Jason Mulder said. "It’s a big jump. The girls really understand the difference. That’s the new level that we need to be ready for. We talked about what does that mean? What do we need to do in the summer? The difference is something definitely that they are aware of. They know there’s pressure."
Mulder, with extensive field hockey experience, led his Warriors to an undefeated regular season in 2025. They also recently secured back-to-back YAIAA titles, including a 1-0 victory over Dallastown Saturday in the league championship.
The last time Susquehannock reached the state level was in 2021, qualifying through District 3 play before a first-round loss to Gwynedd Mercy.
Susquehannock is one of only three high school teams in the PIAA to boast an undefeated record in the 2025 regular season. Lancaster Country Day School also finished 17-0 in the regular season. And, Avon Grove went 18-0.
"Our region is still developing athletes that go to Division I schools," Mulder said. "There’s more of a tradition of competition at those other schools. They send high-ranked Division I players to colleges."
The team is also developing a higher field hockey IQ, evidenced by alumni like Lilly Wojcik, a sophomore at Princeton and a participant in USA Field Hockey training squads. Mulder highlights the collective talent of the 2025 squad, with two seniors committed to Division I programs next fall: Danielle Lavery to Liberty and Cara Zapach to Hofstra.
Mulder, now in his second season as head coach, feels the team is "affecting him more" than he is affecting them.
"When I came in, there was a culture of winning and doing well in the region," Mulder said. "I really didn’t feel that there was a toxic culture or anything like that. My goal as a coach is always to make sure the team is a collective and move toward a goal with unity, prepare them for performance culture, move in the same direction, and know when it’s time to perform in the sport, we play."
He emphasizes creating a strong team identity and values.
Earlier in the season, Mulder expressed pride in his team's performance against New Oxford, a talented program ranked No. 8 in the same class as No. 3 Susquehannock for the 2025 District 3 Class 2A tournament.
“We struggled against New Oxford,” Mulder said. “They are a talented-driven program. That game was the first time that we really played under pressure against a team that could potentially create problems for us. The biggest learning from that game for us was how to stay calm and trust the process in that environment. How do we simplify things and work on things that are right in front of us. We had to trust in what we needed to do in our plan and preparation. We overcame them scoring a goal toward the end, and learned how to manage the game when the other team was gaining momentum. Then they got a corner play. We needed to stay calm and finish the play in regular time and not go into overtime. It was really a great experience for them to double down for our team to not only say what you’re doing but do what you’re saying.”
Mulder's diverse coaching background includes playing in South Africa, assistant coaching at Towson (Coastal Atlantic Association, Division I), and coaching the USA Senior Men’s Indoor National Team.
“You have to adapt,” Mulder said. “You can’t coach developing high school players like you coach international athletes. You can’t coach men like you coach young girls. You have to create a staff that addresses conversations sometimes a head coach won’t be privileged to hear. My mentors really prepared me for that. I think it has made me a better coach.”
Driven to expand his coaching acumen, Mulder attended Level I and Level II training courses through USA Field Hockey and has attended the National Field Hockey Coaches Association annual conference. He specifically sought to understand Title IX's history and its impact on female athletes earning scholarships today.
"I thought to myself, ‘really, lose the ego,’ lose how I do things, and really look at, am I getting the outcome that I want from my team,” Mulder said. “Am I mindful of what I’m doing as a coach because the players imitate what I’m doing."
A pivotal epiphany occurred during his time as an assistant coach at Towson. During a contest at James Madison, he noticed his female players were distracted by their female cycles while he was focused on their competitive mindset.
“I was completely oblivious, and I wanted them to be focused and in a competitive mindset,” he said. “It was raining, storming, and they were worried about managing other things.”
His recent experience with his wife giving birth to fraternal twins has further deepened his respect for women's bodies and his support for organizations that enable women to continue playing sports after childbirth, a privilege he acknowledges men do not share. He believes his college players also helped him mature as a coach and will make him a better dad to his daughter.
Mulder is very content in his role in southern York County, particularly proud of the shared language and strong bond his team has developed. He even receives playful texts from friends globally, asking if he enjoys coaching girls more than training men.
"I laugh, and say yes," Mulder said. "I’m really proud of our team, our hockey talks about tactics. We talk about our press, when we have possession, who is high up to create a goal scoring opportunity. You can see they understood and how they are connecting the dots. We’ve had goosebumps moments. This group can articulate our language that we created in two years. It’s really special. Those are the things that make me proud of the girls. They are inclusive socially. From preseason until now, they stuck to the anchors of our culture. I love working with them. I love international hockey, too, but they are so focused on getting better, it makes me emotional on the field. It gives me so much joy."
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