SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of Nov. 8, 2010)
Molly Phillips is a naturally gifted athlete. The Pennsbury senior never played basketball until she was in eighth grade but was a varsity regular two years later. Phillips didn’t pick up a volleyball until she was in ninth grade but as a junior was a middle hitter for a highly successful Falcon volleyball team. And those are just her secondary sports.
A first team all-league selection in soccer as a junior, Phillips was a two-year captain for the Falcons. She is described by her coach as ‘selfless’ and the ‘ultimate team player.’ “She’s one of those people who it’s always a pleasure to coach,” coach Kaitlyn Battiste said. “Molly exemplifies the idea of leading by example. She’s a phenomenal soccer player and an even better person.”
A four-year varsity player, Phillips anchored the Falcons at central midfield. “The central midfielder is kind of the quarterback,” Battiste said. “Her speed, her technical skill as well as her decision making – she just has the ability to take over a game.”
Phillips was sidelined with a broken nose the first five weeks of the season. In her absence, the Falcons struggled. With Phillips back in the lineup, the team was 5-1-1 in its final seven league games. “When she was out, the other players took turns saying, ‘I think I had a Molly day today’ when they had a good game,” Battiste said. “They definitely looked up to her as a player and as a person and friend.”
An excellent student, Phillips is a member of the National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society. She could have elected to play soccer at the D-1 level but opted for Gettysburg, a highly regarded academic school where she plans to major in health sciences and continue her soccer career.
To read Phillips’ complete profile, click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/female-featured-athlete
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of Nov. 9, 2010)
Ryan Callahan is a four-year varsity runner in cross country, indoor and spring track and a co-captain of the Cheltenham cross country team for the past two years. “It takes real maturity for a junior to be captain, but last year’s team, including seniors, had no trouble following his lead as he is so respected by his peers,” said coach Tom Sexton. “He’s the best leader I have ever coached. I don’t think I’ve coached a finer runner or a finer person.”
Callahan, who leads by example, was the top runner on Cheltenham’s squad and finished fifth in the SOL American Conference championships with a personal best time of 16:37. The following week on the same course at Lehigh, he lowered his time to 16:14 and finished 26th, which qualified him for states for the first time in his career. The quality that makes Callahan a good runner is his competitive nature. “Most kids you coach are competitive, but some kids are ultra competitive, and that describes Ryan,” Sexton said. “He loves to compete. His work ethic is very impressive as is his race day effort. He sets very high standards for himself and is willing to work very hard to reach those standards.”
Callahan has applied early decision to Emory. He has been taking honors and AP classes and is ranked in the top 10 percent of his class. He hopes to continue his running career at the collegiate level and plans to major in health sciences.
To read Callahan’s complete profile, click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/male-featured-athlete
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