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The frenzied pace in the midfield of a soccer pitch pales in comparison to what can be the downright chaos that is a classroom full of first-graders.

Not many have a perspective on both better than Chelsie DePonte.

Prior to the pandemic, DePonte, a senior midfielder for the Stony Brook University women's soccer team and a 2017 high school graduate, taught summer school for three consecutive years at her alma mater, St. Andrew's Priory.

"Definitely chaotic," DePonte laughed. "It just takes a lot of patience. I mean, it's a room full of energy so it's just being able to calm the room down and keep everyone on track."

DePonte's never been one to stray very far off-track herself, despite having her hand in, well, a lot of things over the course of her four years at the school, part of the State University of New York system and located on Long Island — about 55 miles east of New York City.

"Everyone thinks we're so close to the city so it's just busy but where I'm at it's very calm, very relaxing, we're right next to multiple beaches and I think one of the best parts about Stony Brook is that the train station runs straight through our campus," DePonte said of the Long Island Railroad. "So it's an easy way to get to the city and it's maybe an hour train ride, so it's kind of like the best of both worlds, in a way."

Stony Brook has become a second home for DePonte, a native of Honolulu whose only other school — since kindergarten — had been St. Andrew's Priory.

DePonte's attachment to Stony Brook was almost instantaneous.

"I think going through the recruiting process, when you visit so many different places, when you finally find the place that you know you fit in, you get such a rewarding feeling and I think the minute I stepped onto this campus I felt that," she explained.

"It feels like home. I mean, the people here are amazing. I consider them to be a second family and I think that's why I love this place so much and why I'm so involved," added DePonte, who is set to graduate with a bachelor's degree in business management next month.

Among DePonte's many passions is mental health, specifically pertaining to student-athletes at Stony Brook, where she is the co-president of Positive Assurance With Support (PAWS).

"PAWS is our mental health group for student-athletes on campus," she clarified.

DePonte joined the group as a freshman in the fall of 2017. While she's one of four current Seawolves from Hawaii — all of them from Leahi Soccer Club, in fact — DePonte was the only one back then.

"So I didn't really have anyone," she said. "I was kind of lonely, homesick and going through what every freshman goes through and I joined that group and everyone was pure support for me and going into my sophomore year I realized how passionate I am for mental health and this past year I took on a role as co-president of the group and have been able to really strive for our mission, which is to de-stigmatize mental health and bring it to the forefront of everyone's life."

The three others on the team roster from the 50th state are junior forward Tatum Kauka (Kamehameha '18, of Wahiawa), sophomore forward Leah Feato (Kamehameha '19, of Kaneohe) and freshman forward Makenna Robinson (Kamehameha-Maui '20, of Kula).

For DePonte, much of the homesickness — and boredom during cross-country plane trips — went away when Kauka joined the team. The pair had played many games together over the years on the same club team.

"So we knew each other really well and she spoke to me a lot throughout her recruiting process and when she got here, it was awesome. I mean, having a plane buddy for that long, 10-hour plane ride was very nice, but it's great," DePonte laughed. "We get along so well and to continue our friendship and playing together across the country has been awesome."

Despite the heavy Hawaii presence on the team, there is no ‘Hawaii Club.' Nor is there an annual luau.

"Not yet," DePonte interjected, "but maybe if we get a few more people we could do it."

DePonte jokes that when the Hawaii chapter of the Stony Brook alumni association opens — in other words, when she graduates — she will be its first president.

"Probably."

All kidding aside, DePonte acknowledges that the familiarity amongst the Hawaii contingent has paid dividends, both on and off the pitch.

"Yeah, definitely. I mean, we train together during our breaks so it's nice to translate that here," she said. "And we're all really great friends so it's been fun just being around each other, 24/7."

Since she arrived at Stony Brook, DePonte has been a steady performer in the classroom. As in, steadily excellent.

Two years ago, DePonte earned the Undergraduate Recognition Award for Academic Excellence and was also on the America East Conference Fall Honor Roll. This year, DePonte was named to the AE's All-Academic Team — in addition to a First Team all-conference selection for her on-field exploits.

The 5-foot-2 DePonte has started all nine games this season and logged 765 minutes — the most of all field players for the Seawolves. She has played no fewer than 71 minutes in every game and has not come off the field five times this year.

"I think, as a senior, you're just that go-to person and you gotta lead and step up in big games and I'm grateful that my coaches believe in me to do that for us," said DePonte, whose four goals and 10 points are both second most on the team.

"I think I credit my success to the team's success. I think it's a direct reflection of how hard everyone's been working throughout all these months," she added.

The team's success has largely coincided with the timeline of DePonte's tenure with the program.

Stony Brook qualified for its first NCAA Tournament in five years — and for just the second time overall —when DePonte was a freshman. The Seawolves returned to the postseason with a 14-win season in 2019. Both years ended in losses to Penn State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

"Our work started after that NCAA Tournament in 2019," DePonte said.

There has been a lot of work in the many months since. After seeing their season postponed in the fall of last year and delayed to this spring, it was condensed to a mere nine matches over seven weeks.

"Our season was shortened by a lot. We only played six regular-season games and two non-conference games, so as a team we had to figure out things really fast. We had to jell together fast, which is also hard to do because of COVID protocols," DePonte said.

Stony Brook's first two games resulted in road losses at Hofstra and UMass in non-conference contests.

"I think those first two games were a great learning opportunity for us and I think our team has a ton of grit and belief in ourselves and we knew what we were capable of and so from then on it was just taking advantage of every opportunity we had and just doing our thing," DePonte said.

The Seawolves have, indeed, done their thing. Since their 0-2 start this spring, they have won six of seven, including a string of four straight.

"It was definitely a grind, especially because we're so used to playing in August so this was our longest preseason before getting to play, so it was definitely a steady grind," said DePonte, who has started 58 of the 68 total matches she has appeared in over her career, with 13 goals and 12 assists.

But soccer is just one of the many things on the plate for DePonte, who owns a grade point-average of 3.96.

"Time-management is definitely key," she said. "Prioritizing is very important, especially when you're in season and as a student-athlete there are many times when you're going to have to sacrifice things, so just embracing that."

That's why DePonte says that she is more proud of her academic achievements than her athletic ones.

"Because it's tough being a student-athlete, so keeping a high GPA and just keeping up with my busy schedule is definitely something I pride myself on," she expressed.

This season, however, being good on the pitch and in the (virtual) classroom has not been enough. DePonte and her teammates have also had to be extremely disciplined about limiting their interactions outside of team activities.

"As a team we agreed to follow some strict COVID protocols, like we don't see each other outside of practice — just to ensure everyone's safety — and we don't see other people," DePonte explained. "The people that live in New York don't go home and all of my classes are online.

"We're just trying to keep everyone as safe as possible, but I think we are still finding ways to thrive in it. We do a bunch of team bonding on Zoom and when it's safe to be outside and it's warm out so we can all socially-distance and wear a mask."

All of it necessary for player safety. And all of it, a welcomed responsibility.

"When we all came back, as a team we just agreed to try to be as safe as possible. Everything we do, we're just thinking of each other and I'm just grateful that we have the opportunity to play," DePonte said. "There are so many hurdles that people in our athletic department and university had to jump through in order for us to play, so we're all just super grateful."

The Seawolves has parlayed their gratitude into wins and another America East Conference championship. They will be making their third NCAA Tournament appearance in four years when they meet Ohio State in Wednesday's first round of the 48-team bracket.

"It's so special. I mean, no one knows how much work goes into it but us, so just being able to celebrate together and see all of our accomplishments as a team has been really special for me, especially as a senior getting to see the younger players celebrate is just so fulfilling," DePonte said.

DePonte's three trips to the NCAA Division I Tournament will match her three times playing in the HHSAA D2 State Championships as a high school soccer player for PAC-5.

The Wolfpack reached the final four of the state tournament twice while she was on the team, including a fourth-place finish in her senior season. In hindsight, DePonte has great appreciation for the opportunity she had to play for PAC-5.

"It's cool because you don't know many people and you might see them in club and outside, but it's a totally different experience. Not all of you are friends when you first come in so it's kind of like college in a way," explained DePonte, a three-time All-ILH second team all-star. "You're coming in with people from all over the world and getting to play together and combine all of your talents into a team and I think it was really cool being able to do that and it kind of prepared me for (Stony Brook)."

In addition to her three seasons of varsity soccer, DePonte also lettered in basketball and bowling during her prep days at The Priory.

"I played basketball honestly just because I enjoyed it and all my friends played it, too, and it was fun. That's what happened my senior year as well with bowling," DePonte detailed. "It was just something new, something kind of like a side hobby because I was still playing soccer during that during — still training on the side — but yeah, it was a nice little break from soccer."

DePonte, who earned All-Hawaii D2 Honorable Mention in both her junior and senior seasons for PAC-5, said the most important lesson she learned through high school sports was to have a strong work ethic. Her parents (Damien and Iris) have played a pivotal part in reinforcing that ideal.

"My dad coached me when I Was younger and he was the one that was always helping me put in extra work. He's who I go to when I have problems and he helps me work through them, figure out my weaknesses and how to get better," DePonte said.

DePonte will have a chance to add to her prolific career statistics in the fall; She plans to return to the team for a fifth season, as a graduate student in Stony Brook's Master's of Business Administration program.

"I love Stony Brook so much that it was a no-brainer," she proclaimed.

But before any thought of what the future portends, there is what the present holds for DePonte and the Seawolves, who are seeking the program's first-ever win in the NCAA Tournament with an upset of the Buckeyes.

"I think all of us are super pumped and excited. Right now it's just preparation for Ohio State," DePonte said.

For both Kauka and Feato, there will be a familiar face on the opposing team in Buckeyes' sophomore defender D'awncey "Kitty" Jones-Black (Kamehameha '19, of Waianae), their former high school teammate.

Ohio State and Stony Brook play Wednesday at 2 p.m. Hawaii time. The winner will advance to face 11th-seeded Santa Clara, which includes junior forward Kaile Halvorson (Kaiser '18, of Honolulu), a former All-Hawaii Offensive Player of the Year.