Soccer, Lacrosse
Favorite athlete: Simone Biles
Favorite team: USWNT
Favorite memory competing in sports: Scoring this year
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Injuring my eye at UD my freshman year, and being called “Pirate” after the trainer wrapped my eye with pre-wrap
Music on playlist: Currently songs by Adele and Harry Styles, but really anything
Future plans: Go to college
Words to live by: “Be somebody who makes everybody feel like a somebody”
One goal before turning 30: Travel internationally
One thing people don’t know about me: I used to be a competitive Irish dancer for 10 years
By Andrew Robinson
Caroline Hughes will never forget that moment.
As a sophomore in the fall of 2019, the Abington center back made a bad pass back to her goalie that directly led to an overtime game-winning goal for Wissahickon that spoiled the Ghosts' Senior Night. Hughes, who still takes the blame for that one, was despondent on the field when Abington coach Rick Tompkins had a few choice words for her – “The Sun will come up tomorrow.”
"That game is burned into my brain," Hughes said. "We, as a team, lifted our heads up and moved on, but he loves to joke about it and brings it up all the time because he knows it's a touchy subject for me.
"It was a miscommunication and mis-hit by me, I still take all the blame for that, but he lifted me up."
So, the sun did come up the next day, Hughes came back to practice and went right back to work. The ability to get over a mistake and just keep going is only a part of what made Hughes a standout four-year contributor to Abington's girls' soccer team but also speaks to her role on the girls' lacrosse team and involvement outside of athletes in the school.
Tompkins had high hopes for Hughes when he made her the only freshman on a senior-laden squad in 2018, hopes the defender exceeded with her play but even more so with her personality and leadership.
"She's the epitome of toughness," Tompkins said. "She works as hard as anybody, her skills have improved over four years, her leadership is unparalleled, and she does it nicely. She's a really, really good person and it's going to be a big hole to fill because for four years, I had a plug-in center back to run the defense."
Hughes first started playing travel soccer at age eight, but it would take a few years to really find a love for it. At first, she was put at forward with her Hunter Soccer Club side, but after scoring what she tallied as one single goal in two years, she had a talk with her coach, Gary Garrison.
They decided to try her out in the back and just like that, it all made sense.
"As soon as I started on defense, that's when it all clicked and I fell in love with it," Hughes said. "I think I most like the organization of it, but you also get to see the whole game and defense doesn't get enough credit, we may not score goals, but we definitely save goals.
"I like being able to control the game, communicate and watch our forwards score. It's fun but it's also definitely more intense."
Some players are on the field to score goals, others to win the ball, but there's a special place for those who live to deny the ball from going in the back of the net. It's sometimes an unforgiving job, as each mistake is amplified, but it just felt right when Hughes moved from front to back of her team's formations.
"She holds herself very accountable, she doesn't make a lot of mistakes," Tompkins said. "But, playing in the back is not like playing up front where you take 10 shots, miss seven or eight of them, still score two and you're the hero. In the back, that usually ends up with a defeat.
"There weren't a lot of those when she was playing, and she also covered up a lot of mistakes."
Interestingly, soccer wasn't Hughes' first competitive venture. Thanks to the urging of a friend in grade school, Hughes gave Irish dancing a try and became pretty good at it, to the point where she still teaches it today even if she stopped dancing competitively.
"It's definitely mental, because it's just you," Hughes said. "The stamina is also insane and there was some footwork I think has translated into my sports. I started when I was five, and it's still something I enjoy doing."
*****
Tompkins got his first look at Hughes in a summer league he runs, where the then incoming freshman caught his eye with her tenacity in the back. A few weeks later, she was jumping in on a roster full of really good players with high expectations and not holding back.
Hughes not only earned a spot as the lone freshman on the roster, but also a starting nod as an outside defender.
"I think maybe she was surprised she made it, but she not only made it, she hasn't come off since," Tompkins said.
The season would prove very formative for Hughes, not so much on how she played but how she wanted her teammates to feel the next three years she would be on the roster. It also forged the bond between player and coach, with Hughes saying Tompkins was often the friend she needed as she tried to adapt to the new world of high school varsity soccer.
"It wasn't easy being the only one, I definitely felt like I was on the outskirts for the while, so I just had to plug away and ignore any bad energy or negativity, I had one job to do, and I think I did a pretty good job," Hughes said. "It wasn't that easy for me coming into the team and the way I was treated as a freshman wasn't the best, but I took away the good from that year and wanted to give it to everyone.
"Even as a sophomore, I introduced myself to all the freshmen and told them if they needed anything, I was always there. I wanted to be someone who anyone could come to with any issues and really tried to make it a positive environment."
Hughes said there were a couple players that first year who were welcoming and made her feel comfortable, and her coach was a constant source of support. For the last four years, Hughes and Tompkins have had a very strong relationship that maybe wouldn't be evident to anyone who didn't know them.
Coach and player constantly banter back-and-forth with each other, with Tompkins frequently targeting Hughes' red hair and the defender usually quipping right back about her coach's gray hair or status as a grandparent. The frequent riffing is actually among the things she'll miss most next year after graduating.
"She's a people person," Tompkins said. "When you're around her, it's always positive and she is always smiling. I tease the heck out of her, I have for four years, and she can take it then give it right back. I'm going to miss her personality for sure."
Soccer is Hughes' top sport but not her only one. The senior is also a fixture on defense for the lacrosse team and has been a four-year player for the program.
She wasn't a full-time varsity player as a freshman, instead serving as a swing player off the JV roster but she also wasn't alone. Classmate Mei Mei Cheng, who also plays soccer, was the other swing freshman and Hughes' older sister Ellie was the starting varsity goalie that spring.
"I do lacrosse for fun and to keep in shape, we're not sure what to expect this year but I'm definitely very excited for it," Hughes said. "It's been an interesting experience. As a freshman, I didn't play much but my sister was the goalie and we won the league, it was a crazy game against Wiss. The next year was COVID but last year, we just had a really fun team and were happy we got to play."
On top of her athletic feats, Hughes is very involved within the school. The senior is a National Honor Society member and beyond that, is part of the Red Cross Club that organizes blood drives and recruits donors, participates in the UNICEF club and is one of six organizers for Abington's Mini-THON, which raises funds and awareness to battle pediatric cancer.
Hughes hasn't decided on her future plans yet, although she would like to play soccer collegiately if the right opportunity presents itself. Tompkins believes Hughes has the mettle and ability to do it, and she is hoping to catch some program's attention with a couple club tournaments she has left.
In international soccer, the No. 10 jersey is sacred, usually gifted to a team's most dynamic playmaker. At Abington, that number has belonged to Hughes and while she hasn't been breaking down defenders or burying goals, it was fitting that she carried the number that identifies a player so integral to their team's success.
"She's like the story of the swan," Tompkins said. "She started out like the ugly duckling, she was afraid, anxious and nervous and really blossomed by the time she was a senior. It's a difficult hole to fill, losing her both as a person and a player, but I know she's going to do well no matter what she tries because she gives everything her all and has that infectious personality."
A long way from that moment against Wissahickon two years ago, there's a pretty solid resume that includes two SOL conference titles, three playoff appearances, a district semifinal showing and two first team All-SOL selections Hughes can call her own. More than that, it's all the bus rides to away games - especially this past fall - and the little moments with her teammates and coaches that Hughes is going to remember and miss the most at her next stop. Her absence will be felt but her impact will also remain simply by showing everyone else how to work hard and be a good teammate.
"I'm beyond proud of my career, I've had so much fun," Hughes said. "The memories I've had and the friendships I've made, that's the biggest takeaway for me.
"I think COVID actually really united us and that's what I'm going to miss the most. My teammates, the energy, all the Class of 2022, it's been a really great experience at Abington."
