Montclair State University Athletics

Popes spearheaded the resurgence of the field hockey program starting in the late 1990s. In her first season with the Red Hawks, she was an All-New Jersey Athletic Conference selection, scoring five goals and adding four assists as Montclair State won nine games, its highest win total in nearly a decade. Two years later, Popes helped MSU to a school-record 13 wins as the Red Hawks qualified for the postseason for the first time in 10 years reaching the Eastern College Athletic Conference Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship Game. In 2001, Popes put together one of the greatest seasons in program history. A First-Team All-NJAC selection for the second time in her career, Popes set the single-season record for goals and points, scoring 19 times and registering 41 points as Montclair State went 15-4, capping off its record-setting season with the ECAC Mid-Atlantic Championship as MSU topped Catholic University 2-0 for the title. She had four game-winning goals that season and provided the seminal moment in program history scoring the game-winning goal in overtime as Montclair upset No. 1 The College of New Jersey, 4-3. It was the first time the Red Hawks had beaten the Lions since October 1980. Popes would be named a First-Team All-Region pick by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) and became the first Montclair State player to be named All-American as she was chosen to the NFHCA Third Team. Popes finished her career with 33 goals and 14 assists for 80 points. At the time, she finished second all time in points, third in goals and fourth in assists. She also had nine-game-winning goals, a school record.