There weren't many wins for the Northwestern field hockey team in 2014. In all, the Lady Tigers finished the season with four victories and went 3-13 in the competitive Colonial League.

But despite the struggles on the scoreboard, the final scores only told a fraction of the story.

From their regular season opener until their season finale against Northern Lehigh on October 9, the Lady Tigers continued to show signs of improvement despite just three seniors.

"From beginning to end, we continued to progress as a team, gaining both individual skills and team concepts," head coach Lissa Opolsky said. "Although we had setbacks from time to time, we continued to improve during the season. Many of the younger players stepped up and became part of our core."

The three seniors that will graduate from this team (Laura Kotula, Lauren Hill and Carley Sheetz) won't be back to lend their guidance next season. A new crop of leaders will rise when next August rolls around, and it could come from a variety of sources.

Competition will also be an area of focus in offseason, with no spots guaranteed to those that saw varsity action this year. That should make for a more spirited battle for playing time among the returning Lady Tigers.

"Although we started a certain group of underclassmen this year, the group who plays next year may be completely different," Opolsky said. "It depends on the work they put in during the offseason with their skills and fitness. The more they play, the more experience they will have. That will help us in games, especially in games where we need to be mentally tough."

The team's leading scorer, Courtney Page, was a sophomore this season.

Honing their fundamentals and learning the ins and outs of the game were key points of emphasis throughout the season. With a relatively young group coming back again, Opolsky will take the same approach once again.

"Many of them are competitors, and with that have a willingness to improve daily," Opolsky said. "We still focus on fundamental skills and stress making change, but overall they know they are capable of getting better. They don't sell themselves short."

Just three years ago, the Lady Tigers were 9-4-3 and just missed out on league playoffs. Northwestern also qualified for a district tournament berth that year before losing to Northern Lehigh in the quarterfinals.

That, however, was before Opolsky took over the Lady Tigers. She's not looking to any of the past seasons, including 2014 where Northwestern dropped its final nine games. Her focus is on the future, and what the team needs to do moving forward to remain competitive.

"We need to focus on the moment and being better in the moment," Opolsky said.