SINCLAIR MOTT

Playing Field Hockey at Columbia University Fall of 2020
​River Oaks Baptist (K-5th)
St. John's Middle School (6th - 8th)
​St. John's School (2016 - 2020) Captain, Varsity all 4 years

Profile Link

From Sinclair: 
Favorite Field Hockey Memory? Why?

• My favorite field hockey memory was probably U19 NIT when I was a junior. Our team was really strong and finished first at our qualifier, so we ended up in B pool. Every game was so intense and exciting, and I had so much fun playing against tough competition. We proved to ourselves that we could play against top teams and still do really well, and (as always) it was fun to implement the “cowabunga” mindset.
  

 
What was your most exciting recruiting experience?

• My most exciting recruiting experience was my unofficial visit at Columbia. I was able to watch a practice, and the players looked like they were having such a great time. It made me so excited to potentially join the program myself. After that, I knew that Columbia was the school I wanted to attend.
  

Why are you playing field hockey in college?

• I knew that I wanted to play field hockey in college because it has been such a big part of my life ever since middle school. Some of my favorite memories are from practices, games, and tournaments, so I knew that I wanted to continue playing after high school.
  

What have you been doing to prepare?

• I’ve been running and beginning to lift to get in good shape. I’ve also been improving my stick skills and practicing my sweeps and receptions.
  

If you could give one piece of advice to younger girls who want to play field hockey in college, what would it be?

• You should never let the stress of recruiting get in the way of how much you love the sport. I always played my best whenever I was having fun, so you should never lose sight of why you started playing in the first place. The recruiting process can definitely be tough, but it’s important to remember that everything works out in the end.
  

Who was the most influential person in high school?

• The most influential people in high school were my teammates! We have so much fun together, and I can’t imagine playing field hockey without them. My teammates are some of my best friends, and I’m so glad that I get to travel with them, play with them, and spend some quality time with them during Thanksgiving.
  

​Favorite post practice/ game snack?

• Frozen grapes and blue Gatorade!!!
  

What pre game rituals do you use to hype yourself up before a game?

• Kennedy always plays the same songs (“Thank U Next” by Ariana Grande and “Promiscuous” by Nelly Furtado) in the van before our games. I’d say that definitely hypes us all up.
  

What made you want to be a college field hockey player?

• Being on a team is one thing that really defined my high school experience because so many of my best friends are on the field hockey team, so I wanted to continue that in college. I also just love the sport and want to grow as a player in college.
  

What was one of the toughest experiences?

• One of my toughest experiences was when we had a really talented team at RCCs, but we couldn’t pull out a win to qualify for NCCs. It was tough because I knew that our team had so much potential, and we all had high expectations coming into the tournament.
  

Year you began playing field hockey? How?

• I started playing field hockey in sixth grade when I went to the U14 National Indoor Tournament with Texas Pride. I’m pretty sure that we lost every game at least 10-0, but it was still a lot of fun.
  

​From Tina:
Favorite Sinclair Moment (old) / why?:

• Sinclair was on our FIRST U14 NIT Team.  The one that went to Spooky Nook when it was barely finished, had ridiculous security searches on entering the building, hour long waits to get to their parking spots, and our team was horrible!  A lot of stories came out of that U14 tournament. The stories from that tournament are comical now (because of how bad the team was among other things).  Sinclair is one of the original travel team players, and one of the youngest players in our program at the time.  I have a lot of respect for the families that have stayed with us from the beginning (and challenging) years through the later and more successful ones. 

Favorite Sinclair moment (new)/ why?

• At NITQ this year, I had a chat with Sinclair after the first game about how her team needed a leader. She was on the team the longest and had the most experience, so she and another girl should be the ones to step up and lead the other girls.  Well...she did it.  And she did great. The team played extremely well that day and so did she. They came in 3rd place...but they played like a 1st place team that day.

Story we will forever tell about Sinclair:

• Sinclair had struggled with communicating on the field for a while.  This is for many reasons including that for years, she only played on teams with the older girls always being one of the youngest on the team.  By the end of indoor season this year, she started being the vocal leader she has always had the potential to be. She's had a great senior year and I cannot wait to see what she can do at Columbia. 

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Favorite Sinclair recruiting moment/ why?

• When I first met with Sinclair about recruiting, I asked her if she had any dream schools. She said, "Yes, I want to go to Columbia".  I think she was 13 or 14 at the time. I then asked why, and she said, "Well, I like the colors and Jenny Trieschman (who was going there)." It was cute and on par with a lot of the responses of 13/14 year olds.  Years later, she visited the school, fell in love with it and eventually committed there. It was really great to see that sometimes those dreams young girls have become realities.  

First memory of Sinclair / why?

• My first vivid memory of Sinclair was when she was hit at practice in Middle School.  It was brutal and there was blood everywhere.  It was a scary experience, and she was so brave.  ​She was stitched up, took care of the scars (for a long time) and I would have no idea today that she was ever hit that bad.  She's been hit in the face a few times since, and every time she comes back playing like she always did.  It's incredible how much of a fighter is in Sinclair.  Many players would struggle to come back from injuries like she has.