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10/30/2022 12:03 PMSenior captain Lauren McCarthy is nearing the end of her tenure as a member of the Branford field hockey team. As one of four captains, Lauren not only holds an important role for the Hornets, but also for her younger sister Allison, who is a junior on the squad.
Lauren began her field hockey career in her freshman year at Branford High School. Lauren got started after one of her peers signed her up for the team at freshman orientation.
“A close friend of mine signed me up during freshman orientation without me knowing,” says Lauren. “Our head coach texted my mom asking if I was going to join the team. I decided to stick with it, and I’m glad that I did.”
Pete Frye is the head coach of the Branford field hockey team. Currently in his fifth season with the Hornets, Frye has been coaching Lauren throughout her high school career and says that she’s made great strides in that time.
“It has been nothing short of extraordinary,” Frye says. “It’s rare when someone starts a sport their freshman year, never playing before, and becomes a real a difference maker.”
Lauren started off as a defender in her freshman year, then made a shift to another important role by playing the center back position. In that role, Lauren is in control of about 90 yards of the field and is also responsible for erasing mistakes that other player may make during the game.
The Branford field hockey team has a record of 9-3-1-1 as the Hornets enter the home stretch of their regular season. Branford will then participate in the SCC and Class M State tournaments. Lauren feels confident about her team’s playoff prospects this fall.
“I think this year we can make it all the way. With the senior class and the captains and the juniors on the field, as well, I feel like we can really make it far,” says Lauren. “I think that with our record right now and how we have been playing, I think that we have a good chance of making it far.”
During the summer, Lauren and her three fellow captains—Gianna Bozzi, Scout Engstrom, and Lauren Kendrick—ran captains’ practices every weekend. The practice sessions began in late July and went through the end of August, right before the field hockey season began.
“This offseason, I feel like we have done the most that we have ever done in prior seasons,” Lauren says. “The assistant coaches [Jenna Limone and Michaela Hobbs] helped with conditioning, which were held three days a week at 6 a.m. The captains held a captains’ practice almost every Sunday, sometimes twice a week.”
While leading Branford as one of the team’s four captains, Lauren is also serving as a leader for her sister Allison, who has been playing field hockey since her days at Walsh Intermediate School. Coach Frye says that Lauren is making a significant impact for the Hornets through her leadership.
“She is most definitely our most vocal out of all the captains,” says Frye. “Off the field, she is extraordinarily good with organization.”
Branford has two games remaining on its regular-season schedule before the Hornets participate in the playoffs. Lauren is looking forward to competing alongside her sister for the remainder of the season. Allison is a swing player who suits up for both Branford’s varsity and JV teams.
“I never imagined being her captain, because she started playing before I did. I absolutely love playing with her,” Lauren says of her sister. “She is my biggest supporter, and I am hers. If anything, she helps me to be a leader for our team, because of how she supports me, and that pushes me to be a leader not only for her, but also for the rest of the team.”
Branford will conclude its regular season with games against Wilton and Lyman Hall this week. As the Hornets prepare for the playoffs, Lauren wants to continue being there for her teammates throughout the rest of the 2022 campaign.
“I try to lead by example, while also being the hype person for the team, cheering people on that may need that extra boost of confidence,” Lauren says. “It is a big switch playing on a JV field to then a varsity field, so I try to build players’ confidence that may need it.”