BUCKINGHAM – Caitlin Vasey was unusually nervous during her team’s defensive corner drill at last Wednesday’s practice.
Not that the Central Bucks East senior co-captain hadn’t done the drill before. She had. Countless times.
This time, however, was different. This time Lauren Crandall – 2003 East alum and U.S. Olympic team member – was watching.
“It was so nerveracking,” Vasey said. “Everyone was trying not to mess up because an Olympian was watching us.
“I stopped (the ball) and hit it out. She touched my arm, and we were like, ‘Oh my god, she touched me. Lauren Crandall touched me.’ It was really cool. You just listen to everything she says and try to absorb the knowledge she has.”
Crandall returned to her alma mater a conquering hero.
The East alum spoke to an awestruck audience in her former high school’s auditorium, sharing experiences and a slide show of her trip to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing with the U.S. National Field Hockey team.
For those lucky enough to hear Crandall’s story, it was an experience they will not soon forget.
“I was really touched by it,” East senior co-captain Ana Bocutti said. “Just for her to take time out of her busy schedule to talk about her experiences and how she trains was really nice to hear. It shows how if you really work at something, good things can happen.”
While Crandall’s story struck a responsive chord with everyone in attendance, it especially hit home for the field hockey players.
“She was just a small town girl, she fell in love with hockey, she worked really hard at it, and now she’s in the Olympics,” Bocutti said. “Everybody was so inspired by her story and her graciousness. It was nice to have her come back and show how much she cares about the community and the girls.
“Typically you expect someone who has been to the Olympics to be a little bit boastful about their accomplishments, but she was not boastful at all. She was very sincere and honest.”
Crandall capped her stop at East by visiting the hockey team’s practice and offering one-on-one advice to each of the team’s specialists.
“Their eyes were bugging out of their heads,” coach Marie Meehan said. “They were taking in every word she said. They were in awe.
“Lauren took hold of every opportunity that was presented to her and made the most of it. It was a powerful lesson for the girls to learn. It empowers them to affect their own destiny.”
Crandall – herself a defender – had plenty of expertise to offer the players.
“When she talked to me, she looked me directly in the eye,” Bocutti said. “She looked like she sincerely was interested in helping me.
“I was in all my glory. I asked questions of someone who was in the Olympics, so when she told me something, I was like, ‘I need to do that. It’s going to improve my game 100 percent.’ She was just such an inspiration on the field.”
“It was such a great inspiration to see someone coming from CB East and going to the Olympic level,” Vasey said. “We were all really impressed with her knowledge of the sport and her experience going to the Olympics.”
***
The photo frozen on the screen in Central Bucks East’s auditorium was worth a thousand words.
Lauren Crandall – a gold medal draped around her neck and a bouquet of flowers in her right hand – is standing behind an American flag, surrounded by ecstatic teammates with her head thrown back in laugher. The expression on her face is one of inexpressible joy.
According to Crandall – whose U.S. National team had just won the Qualifying Tournament in Russia for a berth in the 2008 Olympics when the photo was taken, it was her second most memorable moment.
The first? No contest.
The clear winner for the top spot in Crandall’s memory bank was competing in the Olympics in Beijing in August. The United States squad finished eighth out of 12 teams – it was seeded 11th entering the tournament, but this experience wasn’t about wins and losses.
“You will never feel anything like putting on your country’s uniform and standing and listening to your (National) Anthem,” Crandall said. “It never gets old, every single time. It’s just an honor.
“It gives me goose bumps just thinking about it.”
Crandall’s ascent to the top of her sport certainly began innocently enough – she did not begin playing hockey until she was in eighth grade.
“Growing up, I was never, ‘Oh, I dream of being on the Olympic team,’” Crandall said. “I make a joke that my high school coach taught me the rules sophomore year in high school, and he got me involved in the Futures. From then on, it was just stepping up the ladder to that next step.
“I played hard wherever I was and never thought about getting to that next level. I never worried about it. I just kind of got there.”
Crandall gave glimpses of greatness in high school playing for former head coach Jeff Harding.
“He was a forerunner in developing me as a player,” she said. “He took me from a soccer player and molded me into a field hockey player. He got me involved in the Futures Program and really began what was my international career.”
As a sophomore and freshman at East, Crandall was part of East’s PIAA state runner-up squads, and during her senior year, Crandall helped lead the Patriots to a state crown.
Not a whole lot changed when Crandall accepted a field hockey scholarship to play at Wake Forrest where – as a freshman and sophomore - she was a starter for the Demon Deacons’ NCAA National Championship squads.
A three-time All-American, she began competing on the international circuit the summer after her sophomore year when she was asked to go on tour to New Zealand with the U-21 Junior National Team.
“I’ve had a lot of amazing experiences, and they all came from great opportunities,” Crandall said. “I worked very hard to get where I am today. I never really realized how much hard work went into it because I like doing it.
“I love playing field hockey. It’s my passion. I love watching it, and I may someday love coaching it, but I definitely love playing it, whether it’s on an Olympic stadium or on the back of a baseball diamond. That’s where I started, and that’s where the love of the game comes from.”
In 2006, Crandall was named to the World Cup squad but was unable to compete because of a broken hand.
After graduation from Wake Forest in 2007, Crandall – an outstanding student who received her degree in communications - moved to Virginia Beach and immediately began training with the U.S. National squad. Since January, she has been living and training in San Diego.
“It’s a sacrifice for everyone, but it’s a sacrifice you’re willing to make because that’s your dream, that’s what you want to do,” Crandall said.
Crandall’s trip to the Olympics was filled with memorable moments – she actually bumped into Michael Phelps in the Olympic Village, but none was more memorable than participating in the Opening Ceremonies.
“Just walking out of that tunnel with the U.S. delegation chanting ‘USA, USA’ and walking into this huge Bird’s Nest – it was just an amazing experience,” Crandall said. “China put on a great show. They treated you so well. It was beautiful.
“The dream to me was the beginning of the Olympics – seeing all the Olympians, being in the Olympic Village and having all of that. After the Opening Ceremonies, my dream ended, and the tournament began.
“It was like, ‘This is why I’m here – to play, to compete and to perform.’ We went to the Olympics to compete.”
The U.S. squad compiled a 1-2-3 record, and Crandall pointed to the final game – a 3-2 loss to Spain in the eighth place game – as one of the most poignant moments of her Olympic experience.
“Our captain, Kate Barber, is most likely going to retire, and it was most likely Angie Loy’s last game. It was a sad moment, but it was an honor to play with them,” Crandall. “Overall, it was a big learning curve. It was everybody’s first Olympics and just a chance to grow from an opportunity we can learn from.”
Crandall will be returning to San Diego and training for the remainder of the year.
“I’m not done playing yet,” she said. “I haven’t played my last game for the U.S., but whether I can say four years from now where I’ll be – I don’t know where I’ll be in a year. As long as I’m having fun, I want to keep doing it.”
And then?
“I always said I wanted to be a pastry chef,” Crandall said. “I wanted to open up my own bakery, and that’s still a goal.”
Last Wednesday at her alma mater, Crandall gave a new and wonderful face to Olympic athletes.
“When she said, ‘The thing I want to do in my life is open a pastry shop,’ we were all sitting there laughing – an Olympian, and you want to open a pastry shop?” Bocutti said. “It’s crazy, but it just shows it is possible for a normal, everyday person to do something really great with your life if you’re really passionate about it.
“Personally, I was inspired by her story.”
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