Golf, Lacrosse
Favorite athlete: Brooks Koepka
Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles
Favorite memory competing in sports: My first lacrosse tournament, the Irish Skirmish, when I was in second grade.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Unfortunately or fortunately, I don't have any embarrassing stories to share from high school sports.
Music on playlist: 70's songs. Yacht rock.
Future plans: This fall I'll be attending Wake Forest University where I plan to major in business.
One goal before turning 30: To use my education to find a rewarding career that helps me give back to the city/community I live in.
One thing people don’t know about me: I enjoy cooking and painting.
By GORDON GLANTZ
When Jeff Bruemmer took the job as the New Hope-Solebury High School boys lacrosse coach, he knew there would be the inherent challenges of being a smaller school.
But he also knew he had an ace tucked up his sleeve with an incoming freshman named Malcolm Raupp.
“I had known him for a couple of years prior,” said Bruemmer. “He played on a club team, Bucks Select, that I’m affiliated with. When I got to the school, I was really happy that he was going to be playing for me. I knew that he was not only a great talent but also a great kid, great leader and an excellent student.
“I was happy to be have at least one player there that I knew of.”
The feeling was mutual.
“We had a good relationship from the beginning, so it was nice,” said Raupp. “I enjoyed it. He looked a lot to me for guidance and help with the team. It was nice having that connection with the coach.”
Raupp’s freshman year was ultimately lost to COVID, but he came back as a sophomore without missing a beat.
“Coming into his sophomore year, Malcolm was a starter,” said Bruemmer. “He started scoring early and often.”
Three seasons and 120 career goals later from the left-handed attacker (including 58 this past season, which ended with an appearance in the District 1 playoffs), it is safe to say that all expectations were exceeded with Raupp as the centerpiece.
“He is a quiet leader,” said the coach of his two-year captain and second-team all-league selection. “He walks silent but carries a big stick. He’s not a big ‘rah-rah’ guy, but he is like an additional coach on the field. His leadership on the field during play really commands everybody’s attention.
“Everybody – teammates, coaches, the administration – all have the utmost respect for him. He’s that guy who is so well-rounded that it is almost kind of hard to believe.”
David and Goliath
The fact that the Lions made the district field with a .500 record was quite an achievement, given that they have the enrollment of an ‘A’ school and are forced to play lacrosse up a size level because no other schools in the district play lower than AA.
It all has a bit of biblical feel to it, like the story of David and Goliath, as the Lions found themselves playing opponents like Pennsbury with student populations rivaling those of small cities.
“We’re always playing the bigger schools, but the players adopted the mentality that we will play who we get, and we will do our best,” said Bruemmer. “Malcolm was really at the forefront of that.”
The Lions had a full roster of just 17 players of all skill levels.
“We never had a question of playing time at our school,” said Bruemmer with a chuckle. “And Malcolm pretty much played every minute of every game for the last three years.
“When we can get him out, we’ll get him out, but it’s only for a few minutes. We basically cannot get him off the field.
“He’s a very, very tough kid.”
For his part, Raupp was quick to deflect the attention away from himself, pointing out that playing attack is not as taxing as other positions.
“Honestly, this was one of the better years that we’ve had,” he said, adding that he was more of a vocal leader in games than in practice. “I’m really proud of the whole team. We have a really short roster, especially our (midfielders). They really didn’t get off the field. There were games where we only had like 14 people.”
Raupp was one of seven seniors who have played their final game, meaning there will be a rebuilding process around some solid incoming freshmen.
It will be a daunting task for Bruemmer, and not having Raupp around be difficult.
“It’s a huge loss to the program,” said Bruemmer. “Not only as a scorer, but character-wise and leadership-wise. It’s going to be a huge hole for us to fill.”
Because Raupp will be gone, it does not mean he will be forgotten.
“Absolutely,” said the coach. “He has put a big imprint on the New Hope Solebury lacrosse program.”
Shooting for Par
As accomplished as he was at lacrosse, Raupp does not consider it his best sport, at least as he looks into his bright future.
At the very least, his “favorite sport” has become golf, which he only started doing regularly during the COVID quarantine. He began competing on the scholastic level as a junior after giving up football as a sophomore.
Wait, what? Gave up football for golf?
“I did, yes,” he said. “My brother (Thomas) was really big into football. He was a senior and I was a freshman, so I played football with him that fall, and then again the next season, but I didn’t really like it that much.
“A lot of my buddies played golf, and it was something more casual. I enjoyed it more than football, so I decided to switch.”
And he never looked back, even qualifying for states as a senior and team captain.
Because he is attending Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C., he knows playing for the golf team is going to be next to impossible.
However, the club team is a strong possibility.
“Yeah, I think so,” Raupp confirmed. “Their real golf team is crazy. They also have a club lacrosse team, but they have practices something like three times a week, so I think I’ll just do club golf.”
But make no mistake about it, Raupp chose Wake Forest because, as was the case at New Hope Solebury, academics come first.
“It was never really my intention to play sports in college,” he explained. “Wake Forest is a really good school. I got in and I decided to go.”
Marching to a Different Beat
You won’t find Raupp listening to Rap/Hip-Hop or Bro-Country in his earbuds.
For him, the music of his parents (Hillary Kavanaugh and George Raupp), the vintage tunes of the 1970s – from Jim Croce to Led Zeppelin to ELO -- better fit his palate.
“Growing up, we didn’t listen to any other music when we were in the car, driving,” he said. “My friends all like it now, too, so we still listen to it.”
Raupp wanted to thank his parents for more than just passing on their musical tastes, as they topped a “thank you” list that included his friends and teammates and coaches for their support on his journey.
Outside of sports, Raupp is in National Honor Society and is involved in student government, serving as school vice president.
“I really enjoy that,” said Raupp, who was also involved in the Bucks County Student Forum. “I get to set up events like Spirit Week that is in February.”
Also setting him apart is the work he does in the classroom.
With a course load heavy in AP classes, he took a weighted GPA of 4.3 into his senior year, which was expected to be a bit higher when all is said and done.
While Raupp did not flaunt his classroom achievements, Bruemmer said that Raupp held his teammates accountable.
It was an extension of being a leader by example.
“I think it definitely has a positive effect,” said Bruemmer. “If he hears that someone is teetering on the edge, he will say, ‘Hey, that is unacceptable.’ He’s vocal in the aspect that you have to put your studies first.”
