Teen From East Brunswick Part Of Junior Olympic-Winning Hockey Team

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ — A sophomore from East Brunswick High School was part of the hockey team that won gold at the recently-held 2022 AAU Junior Olympic Games.

Representing East Brunswick was sophomore Samantha Arnold who played for Team United and won gold at the games.

Samantha has been playing field hockey since age 5 and has trained regularly with US field hockey for a number of weeks, her father Art Arnold told Patch. The 14-year-old attended various training programs and camps before being selected to go the Virginia Beach for the championship.

Samantha was selected based on her strong performance in Nexus, USA Field Hockey’s Olympic Development Pathway program. Around 110 athletes from across the U.S. were selected to participate in the event, Art said.

Apart from hockey, Samantha also plays golf and lacrosse.

Balancing sports and academics is not an issue for Samantha, Art said. “She is a good student and East Brunswick is a great school district. Our family moved to the township in 2019 because the balance between sports and academics is great,” Art said.

The teen received the EBHS Most Outstanding Freshman Award and is a member of the Mid Jersey Knights Field Hockey Club based in Piscataway.

Her sister Natalie is also a hockey player and an incoming freshman at Rutgers University.

The Junior Olympics was held in North Carolina from July 26- Aug. 2 and brought together over 19,000 athletes. The Games provide top U-16 female athletes the opportunity to experience an Olympic-style multi-sport competition while learning from elite athletes.

Samantha has her eyes set on playing in one of the two conferences and hopes to enroll in one of the top schools known for field hockey, Art said.

“I would hope she goes to Rutgers because it’s in-state, and a great program," Art said. "But Samantha has her pick. All the top college coaches have seen her game and known her.”

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