Best friends on and off the field

AUDIE SUMARAY/ THE CAPTAIN'S LOG

With a combined 60 goals and 66 assists tallied this season, Seniors Kaitlin Quigley and Meghan Harkey have led the Christopher Newport Women’s Lacrosse team to a 9-1 record to start the season.

The team is chasing its sixth straight USA South title, as the duo have stepped up their game to lead the Captains in most of the major offensive statistics this season. Besides being senior leaders of the team, Quigley and Harkey are also best friends that are inseparable, both on the lacrosse field and off.

Playing lacrosse was never something that Quigley and Harkey doubted doing, as they both had family members play on high-level teams. Quigley’s brother played for CNU and Harkey’s father played for Maryland, so lacrosse was instilled in them from an early age.

Harkey started playing lacrosse in fifth grade, and Quigley started playing in seventh grade. Their friendship began in eighth grade when they began to play lacrosse together, and they continued it through their high school careers at Loudoun Valley.

It was there that Harkey’s dad, Jay Harkey, was their coach on the team. After both of them earned first team all-region honors, it was apparent that they would have the opportunity to play in college.

When the decision came to choose which college to attend, they looked on their own before coming to a decision.

“I definitely decided first, then we talked,” Quigley said.

Harkey did not have CNU high on her radar of colleges, but once she visited with Quigley she decided that CNU would be a great place to play lacrosse.

While both Quigley and Harkey have won numerous awards during their lacrosse careers, they say their best memories are those of simply playing lacrosse together.

“Playing together, just all the time has been such a special bond we have,” explained Quigley.

Harkey had a more specific memory in mind. “Our first game our freshman year we both started and that made it really exciting,” she said.

Their chemistry on the field is one thing that is quickly noticeable.

“I think the connection those two have and the way they can read each other has been a part of their success and they have been able to transfer that to the younger players,” Head Coach Carolyn Raveia said.

When asked about each player’s best skill on the lacrosse field, Raveia said, “Harkey has great field vision. She is an excellent feeder and recognizes when to challenge and when to go.”

On the other hand, Raveia says that Quigley, “contributes a lot on our draw control and is a strong 1 v. 1 attacker.” These skills are readily apparent this season when looking at their individual stats, as Quigley has 34 goals and 35 draw controls and Harkey has 42 assists, almost double the number of assists as anyone else on the team.

Quigley and Harkey’s friendship transcends from the lacrosse field into everyday life. They live together, take classes together, and are graduating with the same degree.

After they earn their Communication Studies degrees this spring, Harkey and Quigley have expressed interest in coaching lacrosse. Quigley said, “I don’t think I’ll be able get away from the game completely.” While they have the skills to win at the college level, the reason that they will succeed as coaches is due to what Raveia contributes to their passion for the sport. Even if they end up moving away from each other or coaching at different schools, Harkey and Quigley will still remain close.

“We will definitely remain best friends,” said Quigley.

Posted by Darryl Fetz on Apr 6 2011. Filed under Lacrosse, Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.