On November 4, PHL17 named Cherry Hill West’s own senior Tatum Woods as their Student Athlete of the Week. Tessa Peloso of PHL17 would interview and write a piece for the three-sport athlete, a varsity player for the Lions’ field hockey, girls’ swimming, and girls’ lacrosse teams. Peloso states that Woods will leave her mark for West athletics, “being known as hard-working, dedicated to the sport[s] she plays, and that she always has fun.”

Woods is currently the leading scorer for the Lions’ field hockey team, a squad that made the semifinals of the NJSIAA Tournament for Group 3 last fall. Peloso describes that the Lady Lions take each game “one quarter at a time” and “one game at a time.”

“We are on a good track right now,” Woods claimed, about the field hockey team’s 2024 campaign. “I think we can make it really far and I want it to happen for [our] last season.

The field hockey team’s head coach Jamie Robertson commented about Tatum’s dedication and hard work to the team. “Knowing Tatum,” she started, “I know that she’s always someone you can trust on the field. You can say ‘hey’ or ‘I need to score a goal’ and she is going to do it.”

Robertson continued to state her gratitude for Woods’ flexibility and willingness to adapt. “I’ve moved her from midfield, she goes and plays defense, she can be a forward, kinda anything I ask her to do, she goes ‘Okay coach!’ And then does it.”

While Woods is a star on the field hockey squad, she excels most on the lacrosse field. Woods was 2023-24 Lions’ lacrosse team’s leading scorer with 79 goals, and helped lead the team to a semifinal appearance in the NJSIAA Tournament for Group 3 competition. Woods’ talent did not go unnoticed nationally and she would commit to the University of Maryland last September to pursue her collegiate lacrosse dream. Woods believed that Maryland was “welcoming and open” to her and that the school offered the right “vibe” for her.