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Sarah Heath was one of the best goalkeepers in the country statistically in the mid- to late-1980s, however, a feat on the offensive end was just as memorable during her career with The College of Wooster’s field hockey team.
During Heath’s sophomore year, Wooster squared off with the State University of New York at Cortland in the first round of the 1985 NCAA Tournament. Cortland kept Heath busy during regulation and the three 10-minute overtimes, as she turned away shot after shot en route to a career-high 25 saves, and the score stood 0-0. When it came to the flick-off, then-head coach Sheila Noonan “was confident Heath would come through in the clutch.”
She continued to keep Cortland’s offense at bay, allowing just one of the first four strokes to find its mark, then Heath shed her pads as the Scots’ fifth shooter. With the flick-off knotted at 1-1, she took center stage and the all-conference goalie buried her shot, but could not yet celebrate as Cortland had one final attempt. Back in the pads, Heath came up with one final stop to seal the first NCAA tourney win in program history.
Heath would go on to earn two more all-North Coast Athletic Conference citations as well as two on the National Field Hockey Coaches Association All-Great Lakes Region Team as a junior and senior (there were no first- and second-team designations back then).
To date, her .911 save percentage for a career ranks 10th in Div. III history. At Wooster, she is first in that category and second in both total saves (597) and shutouts (20).
Heath also joined the women’s lacrosse program at the encouragement of her teammates, and quickly became a standout in that sport as well. She collected three all-conference certificates – two as a goalie and one on defense as she moved to a defensive wing position as a senior – for six total.
Despite all those accomplishments, Heath was initially unsure if she should play any sports at the College. She noted, “A high school coach told me that I would not make a good collegiate athlete. When Wooster called and said that the only other goalkeeper was a senior, I decided to try it.”
Heath has been overcoming the odds throughout her life, having been forced to deal with type 1 diabetes since childhood. Very active with efforts to raise money for research toward a cure, Heath walked a 40K and raised more than $1,500 in 2010 – the 40th year since her diagnosis – and she looks forward to a 50-mile walk to commemorate her 50th “anniversary” in 2020.
Also of note, her educational experiences at Wooster shaped her professional career. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in history, Heath taught social studies for a couple of years, then earned a Ph.D. in United States history. She worked at a variety of institutions and now has settled in as an associate professor of history and chair of the department of sociology, history, and political science at Indiana University-Kokomo. Her current research focuses on women in the National Parent Teacher Association, with emphasis on their efforts with desegregation in post-World War II America.
Personally, Heath is married to her partner, Jody Mitchell-Heath, and they reside in Kokomo, Ind., with their two dogs.