Whenever you take a new job, you never know exactly how successful you'll be or how long you'll be in the position. That's especially true for coaches, because there are so many variables. For Sue Butz-Stavin, her job has lasted 38 years now and she coached in her 900th game recently, which turned out to be a 5-0 win over the Nazareth Blue Eagles.

Truth is though, that Butz-Stavin almost didn't become the Emmaus field hockey coach, and in fact, turned it down at first when she was offered the position.

"Coming into a program that was rich in tradition and high performance was a big decision," she said. "In fact Emmaus athletic director Gwen Armitage contacted me after returning back to the states after teaching in Australia for over a year. At first I declined the job because I was looking for a teaching job and did not want to commit to the team not knowing about accepting a teaching position. After a couple more phone calls and meeting with the team I accepted the job."

It's a good thing for the Emmaus program that Armitage continued to pursue Butz-Stavin. That persistence led to the building of a program that has captured 24 straight District 11 championships. Success didn't come instantly, but once things turned around there has been no looking back.

"It was a challenge," admitted Butz-Stavin. "My first three seasons were OK, but finally in 1979 we won the East Penn Conference Championship."

The next milestone could come yet this season, as Butz-Stavin approaches the 800-win plateau. With her current team at 8-0 on the season, Butz-Stavin needs just six more wins to reach 800. Her current record is an amazing 796-76-34. If all goes right, win number 800 would come at Memorial Field against Freedom on September 30th.

This year's team has outscored opponents 47-1 and hasn't allowed a goal since the season opener against Allen, giving it seven straight shutouts.

"The team is working very hard on defense and continues to improve on combination passing in our transition. It is a work-in-progess, but will continue to be a challenge as we proceed through the season," said Butz-Stavin.

Even with the success, there is still some work for the team to accomplish and Butz-Stavin is confident that her team can continue to improve as it heads through the latter part of the season and into the postseason.

"Team chemistry and consistent fundamental skill execution is the part of the game we need to see continued improvement in every game," said Butz-Stavin. "We have made huge strides."