The last time Lisbon High hired a new field hockey head coach, the incoming freshman class wasn’t born.

Kayla Royer will be on the Greyhounds’ sideline this season, taking over for Julie Petrie, who stepped down earlier this summer after 14 years as head coach and 17 years with the program.

Royer, who was a standout at Leavitt and played in college at St. Joseph’s and Husson, last coached in 2017 when she led Poland to a 12-5 record and the Knights’ first appearance in the Class B South final.

Royer moved on from Poland after one season because “my full-time job was in the opposite direction, so it just didn’t make sense.”

When the Lisbon position opened in June, coaching friends told Royer she should apply. She had not coached field hockey at any level since 2017, but given her desire to get back into the sport and the fact the school is midway between her home in Greene and the Bath Area Family YMCA, where she works as the Youth & Family Director, she figured Lisbon would be a good fit. 

“I’m super excited to get back into field hockey in general, coaching in general,” Royer said. “It definitely fills my bucket more than anything else that I’m doing.”

Lisbon athletic director Chris Spaulding said that Royer is a good fit to take over one of the most consistent field hockey programs in Class C South.

“Ultimately, we were looking for someone who could step in and take over the established program that Coach Petrie has built over the years,” Lisbon athletic director Chris Spaulding said. “We believe Coach Royer has the passion and knowledge to be successful.”

Since she accepted the position in mid-July and the first two full weeks of August are the designated Maine Principals’ Association hands-off period, Royer has only been to a few summer practices. She was impressed by what she’s seen so far, and hopes the Greyhounds see the coaching change as a clean slate.

“There’s a lot of skilled girls on the team,” Royer said. “A lot of skilled girls. I’m excited to kind of see them put it all together and to see what they can do working together as a team.”

Last year, Lisbon reached the Class C South quarterfinals as the seventh seed before falling to second-seeded Hall-Dale/Monmouth, 1-0. The Greyhounds finished 7-6-1.

‘NOT AN EASY DECISION’

Petrie decided in June to step down.

“Literally, since I got out of college, I’ve coached field hockey there, so it was definitely not an easy decision,” Petrie said. “My kids are getting older, and then I have some personal family stuff, too, and it’s one of those things where you have to put your family first. And, you know, there’s been a lot of changes and stuff in that town. I wanted to leave the program better when I left than when I got it. Something needed to go, and unfortunately, that was it at this time.”

Petrie had more than 100 wins at Lisbon, including the 2012 Class C state championship. The highlight of her tenure, however, wasn’t a personal accolade or a specific game.

“Seventeen years, that’s almost emotional even thinking that it was that long now,” Petrie said. “Just impacting kids and relationships, right? We’ve had really, really good success there, and we’re on the map. People know where Lisbon is. Field hockey, we have a pretty rich tradition. … Success is always lovely, but just the relationships that were formed and the pride that I feel like (I) hopefully instilled in that program (stand out).”

When asked what type of team Royer is inheriting, Petrie said the Greyhounds are “a group of kids that’ll work hard and just adapt to their situation. They’re fast, they’re willing to learn, to play hard, and I wish them, obviously, success. I told them, ‘I’ll always be coach and always be there to support you, even if I’m not on the sideline.'”

Petrie is a teacher and girls basketball coach at Mt. Ararat High, and she said she plans to help the Mt. Ararat field hockey team whenever she has time.