NORTH ANDOVER — Although the North Andover girls lacrosse program has only been around since 2004, the team is quickly gaining a reputation for churning out heavily sought-after college-level prospects.
"Girls lacrosse is such a new sport, it's really up-and-coming," coach Karen Lahey said. "For little North Andover to have these kids break in to a sport that has been predominantly dominated by teams down south is great."
The names Katy Fitzgerald (University of North Carolina) and Aimee Dixon (University of Louisville) are well known, and now you can add Briana Connolly and Caroline Barclay to the growing list of talent to come out of the North Andover system. Connolly and Barclay, both four-year varsity players, signed letters-of-intent to play at the next level in a ceremony held at North Andover High School yesterday morning. Connolly is set to attend the University of Vermont (American East, 8-9 overall last season), while Barclay has committed to Boston College (ACC, 7-10), both Division 1 programs.
They both received substantial partial scholarships.
"Both kids are so well-deserving and are just very hard workers," said Lahey. "They have the athleticism and skill to compete at the higher level, and they've coupled that with their desire in the classroom."
Barclay, who totaled 63 points (44 goals, 19 assists) in North Andover's 17-4 2008 campaign, is happy that the often stressful recruiting process is over.
"Just keeping up with everything was the hardest part," said Barclay. "You'd have a ton of e-mails from coaches after tournaments, and you'd have to make sure you answered everything. It's definitely a huge relief."
Similarly, Connolly — who was sidelined for much of last year with an ankle sprain but totaled 49 points (32 goals, 17 assists) in 2007 — had a tough time juggling recruiting with high school athletics and academics, but she feels all the time she's invested in the decision will pay off.
"It's a great time and really exciting, especially since my parents like the choice I made," said Connolly. "I think I'm really going to have a good time, get a great education, and try to have an impact on the team up there."
Neither girl arrived at their decision easily as both considered numerous other colleges and universities before eventually electing to go with their respective school.
"I had a very open mind and was kind of looking everywhere, but I narrowed it down in the spring last year," said Barclay. "Towards the end of the process, I decided I wanted to stay closer to home. BC has great academics, the atmosphere's awesome, and everyone just loves to be there."
"School comes first, so academics-wise, the course offerings were something that really attracted me to the school," Connolly said. "The setting of the campus is really pretty, and the lacrosse program is in the top one-third in the country. I loved the coaching staff, and I'm friends with two girls on the team."
With Barclay and a healthy Connolly leading the way next spring, the Scarlet Knights are hoping to better last year's Division 2 semifinal round loss.
"We return pretty much our entire lineup from last year, and we have a lot of experienced players," said Barclay. "It looks like everything's going to fall into place for us this year."
