Soccer was family affair for Hampton Hall of Fame inductee Melanie Schaffer

By: HSSN Staff
Sunday, September 17, 2017 | 11:00 PM

Just off Route 8 near Hartwood Acres, there's a soccer field where legends are born and careers are made.

Though the seating capacity is limited, and there's not as much action as there used to be, the two goals remain at Schaffer Field, which also is known as the front yard of Ted and Nancy Schaffer.

“They still have the soccer nets up,” said Melanie Schaffer, more than 10 years removed from her last competitive match at James Madison. “The family is kind of scattered some now. We used to play two-on-two. But Schaffer field still stands, and we still go out and kick on occasion. That's where it all started.”

Since she was able to kick a ball, that's what Melanie Schaffer has been doing: at home, on the road for assorted travel teams, her Beadling club team, and as a four-year starter and two-time all-state selection for Hampton.

On Saturday, she was inducted as a member into the Hampton Athletic Hall of Fame.

Though neither Ted nor Nancy played soccer, when older brother Matt (Class of '02) started at a young age, Melanie, along with younger sisters Monica (Class of '06) and Mallory (Class of '09), followed suit.

“We kind of morphed into a soccer family,” said Melanie, a doctor for the Swedish Medical Center in the Seattle area. “Even though my dad's sport was basketball, most of our weekends were spent at the soccer fields, playing club ball and traveling.”

It's a venture that turned out well for all. Schaffer, a midfielder, was a four-time all-section and three-time All-WPIAL selection, a team captain and MVP her senior year. She also excelled in the classroom as Hampton's top female scholar-athlete her senior year, was a National Honor Society member and salutatorian of her class.

Schaffer's fond memories of playing for legendary coach Frank Christy, who retired in 2012 as the all-time winningest coach in the state with more than 400 wins and 15 section titles, are not lost on her. She said she still recalls looking up to the 1994 and '95 WPIAL championship squads coached by him.

“I can't imagine having a better coach,” she said. “He was just incredibly creative. He just had this unique approach. I think one of his gifts as a coach was making players work hard without knowing it, because it was creative and fun.”

Schaffer also relished the opportunity to play with sister Monica in high school while Mallory served as the team's ball girl. All turned out to be successful in their own right.

Monica played at Allegheny, and Mallory went to William & Mary, where she was an All-American and two-time conference player of the year. She was drafted by the Seattle Reign of the National Women's Soccer League in 2012.

Melanie earned a scholarship to James Madison and started at center midfield as a freshman. She tied for the team lead in goals and was named to the Colonial Athletic Association All-Rookie team. Though a torn ACL slowed her soccer career, it opened a door to her professional one.

“I would say I wasn't the same athlete after (the knee injury),” she said. “Personally,� it was frustrating to me, but looking back at the big picture, maybe that's what convinced me to go into medicine. Dealing with injuries and wanting to help other people be well.”

After earning a B.S. in biology, she spent eight years at the University of Virginia Medical School before coming back to Pittsburgh for her residency at UPMC.

Schaffer, who admits to being smitten with the Pacific Northwest but calls herself a “Pittsburgher at heart,” still hasn't hung her cleats up. She finds time to play in local indoor and outdoor leagues.

“It's hard to walk away from the game. … I remember Frank Christy told me there would come a time where I would be happier on the sidelines coaching,” she said. “Even though I'm 10 years out from my last competitive game, I still want to be out there. I still have it in me.”

Devon Moore is a freelance writer.

Tags: Hampton