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The University of Scranton field hockey team was extremely blessed with the opportunity to take a team European trip to Germany and Austria where they got to experience training and playing European field hockey as well as enriching themselves in the thick and beautiful history of both countries. The team ventured through Munich, Germany, Salzburg, Austria, and Vienna, Austria. Seniors Cori Davis, Katie Redding, and Elle Collins shared the teams' experience and what they got from the trip.

"Upon arrival to Munich, we had a quick turnaround to tour the city and prepare for our first clinic with amazing trainer Niklas Kruger. First, we had a guided tour with an enthusiastic local, taking us through beautiful scenery and historical sights. The team was very hungry so we explored the center-city market for some authentic German food. After the tour and lunch we got on the bus for our clinic with Niklas and then enjoyed buffet dinner at the field. The next morning, we prepared for our busy day ahead. We had our second day of training with Niklas that included lots of 3D skills and fast technique. As a team, we adapted to the fast turf and used the speed to our advantage. After the clinic, it was off to Fussen to visit the famous Neuschwanstein castle. Upon arrival to Fussen, we had some free time to explore the local food again and walk the long hill to the castle. Once we got to the top, we had a guided tour and got to see the most beautiful views from the castle. The experience of Fussen and the castle was probably one of my favorite moments from the trip. We then loaded back onto the bus and drove to Immenstadt where we got to ride an Alpsee coaster. This included beautiful mountain views with endless hills and fields. The coaster was a lot faster than we were expecting and definitely had a lot of fun speeding down the hill and enjoying some ice cream that was waiting for us at the bottom. After a long second day, we drove back to the hotel and enjoyed an authentic German dinner. For our last day in Munich, we had another eventful day ahead of us. We started by taking a trip to the Dachau WWII memorial. This was an educational experience and I recommend this to anyone that visits Germany. We transferred from there to the Olympic Park in Munich that had an endless amount of events with it. We had a lot of free time there to enjoy some food and outdoor activities. Later that day, we headed back to the fields to play a game against HLC RW Munich and enjoy dinner with them afterward. The game was lots of fun and a great learning experience and we all enjoyed getting to know the girls from Munich."-Cori Davis 

"Our second stop of the trip was to the beautiful city of Salzburg. We had quite a long bus ride from Munich to Salzburg but it was so worth it. We got to see so much natural beauty. When we arrived in Austria before heading into the city of Salzburg we stopped at St.Gilgen, a beautiful town full of cute little shops restaurants, and a beautiful lake. We had time to walk around where some of us took the time to shop or enjoy a cute café with some of the best coffee you could imagine. After that, on the way to our hotel we made a pit stop at Marktplatz Mondsee where we had the opportunity to see Basilika Saint Michael, the church where the wedding scene was filmed in Sound of Music. It was so beautiful, words truly cannot describe it. We then made a pit stop at our hotel and ventured to the City of Salzburg where we went to the Mirabell Gardens, another location where the Sound of Music was filmed.  We toured around the city for two hours where we got to see other landmarks like Mozart's Birthplace and the Fortress Hohensalzburg. We spent two days in this beautiful city and we had lots of free time to try foods, coffee, shop, and really take in our environment. We also got to play in our second friendly match in Rosenheim (back in Germany). It was such an amazing learning experience for us to play teams so well trained and learn from them and learn more about ourselves. We were able to exchange Scranton Field Hockey T-shirt with them while they gifted us a scarf that we so graciously look forward to hanging up in our locker room and cherishing!"-Katie Redding

"The last stop of our amazing trip was Vienna. The day we arrived we were greeted by a local tour guide for a 2.5 hour bus and walking tour. The guide explained some of the history behind the buildings and acquainted us to the scenery and area. After the tour, we were left to explore beautiful Vienna and do some shopping. There were cafes at every turn and more shops then we could ever cover. When we had about 20 minutes longer of exploring time it started down pouring. We took cover in the closest stops and when we couldn't avoid it any longer - made a dash for our meeting spot. Laughing and sprinting down the cobblestones of Vienna in a waterfall of rain is something we will always remember. After finally making it to the meeting spot, we still had another 5 minutes of walking to get to our bus. Those of us not smart enough to shop for rain gear decided that the damage was done and to keep walking. Eventually we made it back to the bus where our driver found a bunch of umbrellas to help us on our walk to the restaurant Sofienwirt. At the restaurant, we were served a traditional soup dish, schnitzel, and a local apple dessert. We made it back to our hotel after the long day of traveling and got ready for our last day. Our first stop on our last day was at Schoenbrunn Palace where we explored the beautiful gardens and took lots of pictures. We loaded the bus again and headed to Prater Wien, an amusement park in Vienna. We split up to go on rides but all commonly shared a scary - but fun time on the group favorite - The Black Mamba. There were rollercoasters, haunted rides, swings, and more. We all had such a fun time but had to switch gears for our last game. We played SV Postsports, a competitive and aggressive team. We had good time competing and soaking in our last moments on the pitch in Europe. After packing up we walked over to a local restaurant to enjoy a different type of schnitzel and celebrate one of our teammates' birthdays. The team couldn't have had a better time all together exploring Germany and Austria. We all feel so blessed for the opportunity and are ready to keep competing back in the States this fall! "-Elle Collins