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09/27/2018 12:00 AMMeghan Augur was a star field hockey player for North Branford High School and then continued her career at Roger Williams University. This fall, Meghan joins the coaching staff at North Haven as the JV head coach and a varsity assistant. Meghan says that she’s always been interested in becoming a coach as a way to stay around the game.
“There were a couple of years where I wasn’t involved in the game during college, and I missed it. So, coming on as a coach, I get a new perspective,” Meghan says. “It’s a humbling feeling when the girls score, and they get so happy with themselves and the team. It feels good to make a difference.”
Meghan played for a prestigious program at North Branford. After graduating from Roger Williams earlier this year, Meghan received an opportunity to join Head Coach Kim Bouffard’s coaching staff at North Haven. Meghan says she feels thankful to have come aboard.
“I thought it would be different to coach and up-and-coming program, because I wanted to make a difference. Going to a school like that, I can help mold the program,” says Meghan, who lives in North Branford. “I would be beneficial as a new coach to make a difference for these girls. When you’re not a winning team, your confidence is not as strong. I bring a lot of energy and want to help the mojo of the team.”
Meghan brings a deep field hockey background to North Haven. She was four-year starting goalkeeper at North Branford, before graduating in 2014, and then played for two seasons at Roger Williams in Rhode Island. In her senior year of high school, Meghan was named to the All-State First Team, the All-Shoreline Conference Second Team, and earned Scholar-Athlete honors. She was also named the Most Valuable Player of the state’s Senior All-Star Game on behalf of Head Coach Babby Nuhn’s squad.
“Playing for Coach Nuhn definitely shaped me into who I am on the field hockey field. She taught us about field hockey and life, which I hope to bring to the girls,” Meghan says. “She’s a very positive coach and harps on team unity. I try to bring that to North Haven. I want them to play for the name on the front of the jersey—not the number on the back.”
While playing at Roger Williams, Meghan set the school record for the best career save percentage with a clip of .732. Meghan recorded 52 saves in seven games played at the school.
“I thought Roger Williams was the best opportunity for me because, when I talked to the coach, they needed a goalie,” says Meghan. “I played my first two years, but my goal is to be a police officer. That goal is more important than field hockey to me, so I stopped playing.”
Meghan is looking for her experience as a goalie to prove a huge asset for North Haven. She’s working with the Indians’ goalkeepers, but is also using what she learned from playing the cage to help out everyone on the field.
“Being able to know the game from the perspective of being behind everyone helps me coach both the offense and the defense,” says Meghan. “I specialize with the goalies and defense, because that’s more of my strong suit, but I know from playing in goal the best places for the forwards to shoot the ball on the cage.”
Meghan says that she’s already seeing big improvements from North Haven’s goalies during the early stages of the campaign.
“I help them with their skills and overall confidence,” she says. “I do a lot with footwork and clears out of the circle. I can already see those are our biggest improvements.”
Meghan feels that she’s developed a leadership mentality as a result of playing field hockey in multiple venues throughout the years. As she dives into her first season at North Haven, Meghan feels eager to impart that trait to the Indians’ athletes.
“I’m very loud and energetic, so I think that helps me lead these girls to more success and positive energy on the field,” Meghan says. “I’ve worked with a lot of different teams, so that helped me learn different skill levels and how to improve one person to make the full team see success.”