RallyNorth.net

The start of something great

Wednesday, June, 10 By David Willis
Staff writer

WELLESLEY — North Andover senior Caroline Barclay wiped away a few tears and smiled as she reflected on the season.

“We won’t be Scarlet Knights anymore,” said Barclay. “But it doesn’t end here. I’ll still be playing plenty of lacrosse. I’m excited.”

Barclay was one of 13 seniors on the North Andover roster who saw their high school careers come to an end last night with a tough 15-6 loss to Norwell in the Division 2 state final.

But it is not the end of the line for the midfielder. She is one of many Scarlet Knights who will be playing on a bigger stage next year.

Three North Andover players will be taking their skills to Division 1 lacrosse next season, with Barclay heading to Boston College, Bri Connolly the University of Vermont and Stephanie Taylor Siena.

“You will be hearing a lot about these girls in the next few years,” said North Andover head coach Karen Lahey. “They will represent North Andover lacrosse very well.”

Connolly had an assist for the Knights last night. She ended the year with 54 goals and 84 points, both second on the team to Jenn Pino. Connolly totalled 95 goals and 144 points over the last three seasons despite missing much of her junior year with a high ankle sprain. Next year, she will suit up for the Catamounts.

“I committed at the end of my junior year,” said Connolly. “They recruited me. It is really intense up there and it’s a great environment. We pushed it as far as we could this season, and it had to come to an end sometime.”

Barclay knows it will be a different world in the ACC.

“It will be a much bigger overall commitment,” she said. “As soon as I arrive at the college in the fall, work begins. It really starts tomorrow. It’s going to be a lot different. But it is very exciting.”

A midfielder, Barclay finished her senior season with 41 goals and 61 points, both third on the team. She said she received a three-quarter scholarship from BC.

Taylor, a talented artist and goalie known for her colorful hair, earned Eagle-Tribune All-Star honors a year ago.

Lahey said she fully expects all three standouts to make a splash ... just like three former Scarlet Knights did this spring in the Division 1 ranks (Louisville’s Aimee Dixon, North Carolina’s Katy Fitzgerald, Vermont’s Annie Strout).

“I can’t believe they’ll be away,” Lahey said. “Caroline is a great defender with a tremendous heart. She’ll run through a wall for you. Connolly is a great scorer and she should be very good in Vermont. This whole senior class was tremendous. They were so unselfish.”

The three Division 1-bound players aren’t the only girls that will continue their lacrosse careers. Pino will play for Merrimack College, while Emily Vento (Stonehill), Amanda Wescott (Bates) and Sadie Graham (Westfield State) will all be hitting the field next year. Katie Kleinendorst will play hockey for the University of New Hampshire.

And they will bring with them the memory of the greatest season in North Andover lacrosse history.

“Playing in college makes this a little easier on me,” said Barclay. “Everyone has to lose one day, and today wasn’t our day. But it was an amazing season. We will have these memories forever.”