Upper Dublin clinched its fifth consecutive SOL American Conference crown. The squad is anchored by its eight seniors.
‘Never Settle.’
Their motto for the season is just two words, but those two words say it all.
Upper Dublin made its mark last season when the young Flying Cardinals – with just one senior on their roster – advanced to the District One quarterfinals and earned a berth in the state tournament.
“This group is willing to work hard,” coach Dee Cross said. “They don’t want to settle for second best. They want to do the best that they can.”
The Flying Cardinals’ best has been pretty impressive so far this season. They rolled to a 12-0 record and their fifth consecutive American Conference title, and overall, they are 15-3 with their only losses to a pair of teams – Springfield (Delco) and Conestoga - ranked above them in the PA Media State Rankings as well as a Vero Beach (Fla.) squad that is nationally ranked.
At the heart of a squad that has set the standard for future Upper Dublin squads to follow are eight seniors. Brooke Callahan, Kelly Cross, Michele DeVincent, Danielle Ferguson, Emily Hitchings, Anna Lauer, Lily Morreale and Steph Speese have been playing together for almost as long as they can remember.
“They started playing in the Crooked Cross program in second grade,” coach Cross said. “They have all become very good friends, and last year they heard ‘one more year, one more year,’ and they had so much success last year that it really encouraged them to work hard for this year and play together.
“I really do think they like each other a lot off the field, and that always helps.”
Playing together, according to the players, has become second nature. For the seniors, this year's conference title was their fourth in as many years. During that span, the Flying Cardinals boast a dazzling 52-0 record against conference foes.
“It’s kind of funny because we’ve been together for so long that I feel as though we’ve grown together as a pack almost,” Kelly Cross said. “Sometimes we read each other’s minds on the field. Just from playing together so long, you get to know how each other plays, and that’s been helping us a lot.”
“That has helped us a lot,” agreed Callahan. “We all know each other and how we play, so being with someone that long, you can read them in a way that’s harder to do with other people.
“I think a major thing this year is we really trust each other because we have been together so long, and that helps.”
This year’s squad entered the season with decidedly lofty expectations after last year’s successful postseason run.
“We try to take each game step by step just because of that,” Kelly Cross said. “We know that we definitely are a team to be reckoned with in the Suburban One League, and with that comes a little bit of confidence but also some intimidation I guess you could say.”
“We just knew that we did have the bar set so high,” Hitchings added. “There was incentive for us to keep it high and keep playing at that level.
“That’s why we picked the quote ‘Never settle’ because we did well last year, but still always want it.”
Have the players felt the pressure?
“A little bit,” Kelly Cross said. “Just because we’re expected to perform at our best every game, but we definitely have ‘those games’ just like everybody else.”
Friday was the final day of high school for Upper Dublin’s seniors, who will be doing Community Study internships to close out the year, and the reality that a special era is coming down the home stretch is starting to hit home.
“It’s really hard,” said Callahan, biting back tears. “We’ve been together for so long. A lot of us are playing in college, so I know we’ll be looking up each other’s scores and following each other in college.
“I feel like we’re such a close group that we’ll always be together.”
When asked what they will remember most about their lacrosse experience at Upper Dublin, the team’s wins and accomplishments are acknowledged only in passing.
What exactly will they remember most?
“Just the closeness of the team and the memories,” Hitchings said. “I remember some games, but I feel like it’s more about being a team and being together all the time.”
“Just the different personalities and how we complement each other on and off the field,” Kelly Cross said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better group of seven people to spend my last year of high school with.”
Callahan included the coaches in her memories of high school lacrosse.
“I’ll probably remember the people more than the games,” she said. “Especially with all the experiences that I’ve had with Mrs. Cross being the great coach she is and Miss (Kendra) Finger and Miss (Jess) Sundling – they just really created me into the player I am, and I owe them 100 percent of what I am today.
“Along with club, this is the team I’ve known forever, and I feel like we’ve all helped shape each other into the players we are today. We all push each other, especially at practice.”
Five of the seniors will be playing lacrosse at the collegiate level.
“In all my years of coaching, I’ve never had that many,” coach Cross said. “That is a good example for the younger girls – starting to play on youth teams and then playing for a club team in the summer, which they all do.
“You need to play against good competition, and that’s what makes you better. These seniors have set the bar very high, and graduating such a core part of our team, I really do hope for our program that we will not have a big drop-off. These girls have seen what it takes to build a good program, and I hope the younger girls are ready to continue to work hard and do the extra things outside of March to May. You really get better from May to March. I’m hoping they take that as a good example these girls have left for them.”
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