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Miller Caps 2022 in Argentina with U.S. National Team
12/16/2022 12:37:00 PM | Field Hockey
The final week of classes for a semester is always a stressful time for Duke students. Final presentations must be given, and those last papers turned in before making the last push through exam week.
Duke field hockey senior Hannah Miller was fortunate enough to add another stressor to the week – traveling to Argentina to train with the USA Field Hockey Women's National Team. Miller received an e-mail invitation from USA Field Hockey the week before Thanksgiving to join the squad in Argentina for a week to train and play in a few games against the national teams from Argentina and Netherlands.
The e-mail to Miller noted that if school allowed the spot was all hers. Miller didn't even blink an eye, and before even giving thought to the coordination, said to herself "Absolutely." Now all she had to do was clear it with her Duke professors.
A high achieving student, Miller explained the situation and organized it with them and next thing she knew she was in a hotel in downtown Bueno Aires preparing to train with the nation's best field hockey players and play two of the world's best teams.
"It was hard to organize it with my professors, but most of them said 'Go for it. That's so cool," said Miller. "Although it was finals, it was kind of a good time because it was all work [I could do by myself] so I made it up on my own instead of having to Zoom in."
Miller, always on the move, hit the ground running once she landed. Thrown into a highly competitive environment with the members of the national team and a host of other college players, Miller's anxiety about playing at that level quickly waned.
"They were so welcoming to me," Miller said of the veteran players. "I was kind of intimidated at first. [So many of them] had been on the team for a while and I'm technically not on the team, but I'm training with them. They were so welcoming to me and the other [current college players] who came on the trip. The coach [David Passmore] also was so supportive. He told me 'You're here for a reason, you can compete at this level.' It definitely made me feel more confident."
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So, for almost two weeks, Nov. 28-Dec. 11, Miller ate, slept and breathed field hockey. They trained "a lot," had team meetings and team meals for bonding and then mixed in a total of five games against Argentina and The Netherlands. When not with the team, Miller turned her full focus to her schoolwork as she completed her papers and other assignments from 5,000 miles away.
"It was hard because we had practices, meetings, team lunch and team dinners so the few hours I had on my own I had to do work, which was tough," Miller said. There were other college players [there too] so we all worked together. It was tough, but it was fun."
However, it wasn't all field hockey and books for the native of Malvern, Pa. With the FIFA World Cup taking center stage of the sports world, Miller took advantage of the unique opportunity of catching some games in the soccer-crazed country.
It didn't take long for Miller to catch World Cup fever. Joined by a few teammates, Miller would walk down to the major street near the team hotel and immerse herself in the experience of watching Lionel Messi and Argentina on the big TVs in the capital city. Inspired, Miller went all in and even purchased a Messi jersey.
"I was trying to get all of my work done so I could go watch the game because it was so cool," Miller said. "A couple blocks away from our hotel was a big street with a lot of restaurants and people stood in the street and watched [the games] on big TVs. It was so cool. A few of us became die-hard fans [for Argentina] and we bought Messi jerseys."
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On the field, Miller dove in headfirst as well, soaking up the differences in style of play and the decision-making ability of especially the Argentinian and Dutch players. Used to a slower game at the collegiate level, Duke's top scorer this past season acclimated and saw the pace of her play improve over her time there.
The exposure to the level of field hockey played over these two weeks in Buenos Aires is sure to boost Miller's game on and off the field when she returns to Durham in January. While the skills – technical and tactical – she gained are important, it is the confidence Miller picked up throughout the experience that can impact the Blue Devils the most.
But before Miller returns to Durham to share her experiences with her teammates, she will put them to use at home. First comes the World Cup Final December 18 when Miller can don her new Messi jersey as she tries to bring the cup back to Argentina for the first time since 1986.
Most importantly though will be when she takes the field in January with hopes of earning a spot on the 2023 U.S. Women's National Indoor Team for the upcoming FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup in South Africa. Yet another potential experience for immeasurable growth.
"I learned so much from both training with the U.S. team and playing against Argentina and The Netherlands just because they are all so talented and their style of play [is different] and their decision making [is so good]," Miller said. "I definitely learned a lot and the speed of my decision making itself improved and gave me a lot of confidence and things I want to bring back to Duke and to the indoor [tryouts]."
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Duke field hockey senior Hannah Miller was fortunate enough to add another stressor to the week – traveling to Argentina to train with the USA Field Hockey Women's National Team. Miller received an e-mail invitation from USA Field Hockey the week before Thanksgiving to join the squad in Argentina for a week to train and play in a few games against the national teams from Argentina and Netherlands.
The e-mail to Miller noted that if school allowed the spot was all hers. Miller didn't even blink an eye, and before even giving thought to the coordination, said to herself "Absolutely." Now all she had to do was clear it with her Duke professors.
A high achieving student, Miller explained the situation and organized it with them and next thing she knew she was in a hotel in downtown Bueno Aires preparing to train with the nation's best field hockey players and play two of the world's best teams.
"It was hard to organize it with my professors, but most of them said 'Go for it. That's so cool," said Miller. "Although it was finals, it was kind of a good time because it was all work [I could do by myself] so I made it up on my own instead of having to Zoom in."
Miller, always on the move, hit the ground running once she landed. Thrown into a highly competitive environment with the members of the national team and a host of other college players, Miller's anxiety about playing at that level quickly waned.
"They were so welcoming to me," Miller said of the veteran players. "I was kind of intimidated at first. [So many of them] had been on the team for a while and I'm technically not on the team, but I'm training with them. They were so welcoming to me and the other [current college players] who came on the trip. The coach [David Passmore] also was so supportive. He told me 'You're here for a reason, you can compete at this level.' It definitely made me feel more confident."
Â
So, for almost two weeks, Nov. 28-Dec. 11, Miller ate, slept and breathed field hockey. They trained "a lot," had team meetings and team meals for bonding and then mixed in a total of five games against Argentina and The Netherlands. When not with the team, Miller turned her full focus to her schoolwork as she completed her papers and other assignments from 5,000 miles away.
"It was hard because we had practices, meetings, team lunch and team dinners so the few hours I had on my own I had to do work, which was tough," Miller said. There were other college players [there too] so we all worked together. It was tough, but it was fun."
However, it wasn't all field hockey and books for the native of Malvern, Pa. With the FIFA World Cup taking center stage of the sports world, Miller took advantage of the unique opportunity of catching some games in the soccer-crazed country.
It didn't take long for Miller to catch World Cup fever. Joined by a few teammates, Miller would walk down to the major street near the team hotel and immerse herself in the experience of watching Lionel Messi and Argentina on the big TVs in the capital city. Inspired, Miller went all in and even purchased a Messi jersey.
"I was trying to get all of my work done so I could go watch the game because it was so cool," Miller said. "A couple blocks away from our hotel was a big street with a lot of restaurants and people stood in the street and watched [the games] on big TVs. It was so cool. A few of us became die-hard fans [for Argentina] and we bought Messi jerseys."
Â
On the field, Miller dove in headfirst as well, soaking up the differences in style of play and the decision-making ability of especially the Argentinian and Dutch players. Used to a slower game at the collegiate level, Duke's top scorer this past season acclimated and saw the pace of her play improve over her time there.
The exposure to the level of field hockey played over these two weeks in Buenos Aires is sure to boost Miller's game on and off the field when she returns to Durham in January. While the skills – technical and tactical – she gained are important, it is the confidence Miller picked up throughout the experience that can impact the Blue Devils the most.
But before Miller returns to Durham to share her experiences with her teammates, she will put them to use at home. First comes the World Cup Final December 18 when Miller can don her new Messi jersey as she tries to bring the cup back to Argentina for the first time since 1986.
Most importantly though will be when she takes the field in January with hopes of earning a spot on the 2023 U.S. Women's National Indoor Team for the upcoming FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup in South Africa. Yet another potential experience for immeasurable growth.
"I learned so much from both training with the U.S. team and playing against Argentina and The Netherlands just because they are all so talented and their style of play [is different] and their decision making [is so good]," Miller said. "I definitely learned a lot and the speed of my decision making itself improved and gave me a lot of confidence and things I want to bring back to Duke and to the indoor [tryouts]."
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Players Mentioned
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