Abello Contributes in Myriad Ways for Hoos

By Jeff White (jwhite@virginia.edu)
VirginiaSports.com

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Mia Abello was still in high school when she was called into training camp with the United States’ national field hockey team for the first time, so her skills as a player have long been recognized. Her head coach at the University of Virginia doesn’t take her on-field contributions for granted, but that’s not the only way, Ole Keusgen said, that Abello distinguishes herself.

“When Mia is committed to something,” Keusgen said, “she’s literally in 110 percent, and I feel like you see that every day with the way she approaches being a national-team player, being a captain of our team, and doing whatever is needed in order to develop. She will put in the work, regardless of what that looks like. She’s just super professional, and that combined with her passion for being a team player and a team captain makes her very unique.”

Abello, who was born in London, moved to Houston with her family as a baby and grew up there. As a senior at the Kincaid School, she was called up to the U.S. senior national team, as were two other 12^th-graders.

“It’s highly unusual,” Keusgen said, “because the level of high school field hockey, it’s so different. It’s a different sport, if you will.”

Abello had already represented the United States at the U18 and U21 levels, but to be training with so many older women, some of whom were married and expecting children, was a powerful, and occasionally intimidating, experience for her.

“It provided so much perspective,” Abello said, “learning from the best in the country and working with them and having them also be like, ‘Hey, you’re on this team, you deserve to be here.’ It really is a cool way of growing up.

“You don’t really know what to expect. I would say I really learned how determined and disciplined the older girls are, and their words carried a lot of weight. I just had a listening ear and kept my eyes open and tried to take in all the information I could, not only on how they train and perform, but how they treat their teammates and what they’re doing outside of hockey. In reality, all the older girls have the same goals as I do. It’s just they have a little bit more experience.”

Abello, who’s in her third year at UVA, made her international debut for the United States’ senior team against New Zealand early this year. So did former Virginia great Jans Croon, who was a junior who Abello arrived on Grounds in 2023.

“Mia and I are great friends, so that made it special, for sure,” Croon said.

Abello and Croon first met when they were playing for the U21 national team. They bonded immediately and have been close ever since. Croon remains one of Abello’s biggest fans.

“Mia’s work ethic stands out across the board,” Croon said, “as well as her positional versatility. I think on every team that I’ve played with her she has played a different position: from defense [with] USA and her first year at UVA, to then attacking midfield and even a few rotations at forward during her second year at UVA.

“It was fun to connect in different ways on the field. And then, more importantly, off the field Mia is a great teammate: always encouraging, supportive and also very motivational.”

Third-ranked Virginia opens the season Friday at 5 p.m. against No. 18 Penn State at Turf Field. Abello is one of three captains for the Wahoos, along with graduate student Suze Leemans and senior Lauren Kenah.

The Hoos’ roster includes 11 newcomers—nine freshmen and two transfers—many of whom have been cast in important roles already.

“It’s really a cool group,” Abello said. “It’s not easy to bring in almost 50% a new team, but we want to make the most out of this. We also know what it feels like to lose to the [eventual] national champions two years in a row, and we want to be on that stage.”

Abello, a midfielder, totaled nine points as a freshman in 2023 and helped UVA advance to the NCAA semifinals. She contributed 10 points (on five goals) for the Cavaliers last year, and they’ll need significant production from her again this year. But her leadership will be equally important, Keusgen said.

She can show the newcomers “how to approach being a Division I field hockey player,” Keusgen said, “being a player for a top-10 program, what it takes on a daily basis. But also being vocal. I think particularly for first-years that’s super important, to feel welcome and also to be able to bring that energy, when an upperclassman and a team gives you permission in a way to do that. And so from a leadership standpoint, that is kind of what we need from Mia, and that’s what she brings with her personality. It’s not something she needs to create; that’s who Mia is.”

In May, Abello was named to the U.S. roster for a two-match series against Ireland in Charlotte, N.C., as was Croon. A back injury, however, forced Abello to sit out the series.

“It was a bit of a tricky summer,” she said. “It’s hard as an athlete not being on the field, but there’s a certain discipline that comes with rehab. I had to be very detail-oriented.”

She’s healthy now and played for the Hoos in their preseason exhibitions this month. Virginia tied No. 17 Liberty and defeated Old Dominion and American.

“The team is explosive and fast,” Abello said. “There is a lot of new speed and aggression.”

Before she started picked up field hockey as a girl in Houston, Abello played soccer, softball, basketball and tennis. She swam, too.

“There’s a lot to be said for being an athlete, I think, before entering field hockey,” Abello said. “It’s such niche sport that requires a lot of different skills. And so I think starting field hockey a bit later was actually pretty cool.”

The skills she developed swinging a softball bat and defending in basketball helped her in field hockey, which quickly became her sport of choice.

“I started playing in fifth grade,” she said. “Picked up a stick for the first time and loved it. I also played with my best friends, just like I played other sports. We all kind of hooked on to field hockey around the same time.”

She grew up in a sports-mad family. Her brother, Carlos, is a former Princeton baseball player, and their father coached them in multiple sports when they were young.

As a junior in high school, Abello played for the U18 national team against Canada. She then moved up to the U21 team, for which she’s made numerous appearances.

Closer to home, Abello played for the Texas Pride club, and that’s when she met Keusgen, who was then an assistant coach at Virginia. When she began looking at colleges, Abello said, she made a list of her priorities.

“I wanted to go to a high academic school with a strong, gritty, high-work ethic field hockey team,” she said.

Her visit to Charlottesville convinced her she’d found her future home.

“I grew up going to SEC football games,” Abello said. “I’m a Texas A&M fan, so I liked the energy that UVA brought. I loved being in the mountains. I liked the way the team played, and I had a great connection with Ole. He used to come down to Texas Pride clinics a lot and coach us.”

Abello, a student in the Frank Batten School of Public Policy and Leadership, also plans to take some business classes at UVA. Her father is an attorney, and he’s “been a very cool role model,” Abello said. “He likes to say his job is bringing two people together, which is like meeting people in the middle.”

When she graduates, Abello said, she’d like to work in a “team environment. Maybe that’s consulting or some type of business management. I love working with others, just being in a strong environment and making an impact on other people’s lives. But I do want to play field hockey for as long as I’m able.”

She hopes to one day represent the United States at the World Cup “or even the Olympics,” Abello said. “I’ve always had that goal. That comes first, and then I’ll continue to understand more about the business world as I go.”

Abello, who turned 21 last month, has time to figure out her career path. For now, she’s focused on helping the Hoos pursue the program’s first NCAA title.

“It should be an awesome season,” she said.

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