Kellee Cribby speaks with optimism about this year’s Fox Chapel Area girls lacrosse team.
That’s understandable. There is quite a nucleus returning from a team that posted a 14-4 record in 2023, 8-1 in WPIAL Class 3A, Section 2, and advanced to the WPIAL semifinals.
That optimism begins with the return of senior midfielder Sydney Schutzman, a USA Lacrosse High School All-American in 2023 who notched her 100th career goal last season.
“She’s been starting since her freshman year,” coach Cribby said of Sydney. “She’s very talented. We’re excited to have her back for her final season. She’s just very well rounded. She’s a great attacker. She’s great driving (one-on-one) to the goal, which is something you always want as a coach. She’s also a strong defender. Her ability to anticipate and pick off balls and make a lot of things happen that we can carry on to the offensive end is huge. As a junior captain last year, she really grew into that leadership role.”
Just 42 girls from Pennsylvania were chosen as All-Americans, only eight from Western Pennsylvania
Senior Tess Petrucelli returns to the goalkeeper position that she’s held for three years.
“We’re excited to have some leadership in the back of the field as well,” coach Cribby said.
Also key to this year’s team will be a strong group of juniors including Meg Delaney, an all-section selection in 2023.
“We have a good group of juniors and a good group of sophomores,” the coach said. “We did graduate a good chunk of our defense, so we’ll definitely be flexible on how we build our defense as we find out what works well. We had to do something similar last year. We played around with a couple of different defensive sets until we found one that worked well.”
Coach Cribby feels last year’s playoff run can only benefit this year’s squad.
“We had a good chunk of underclassmen on the team last year,” she said. “This gave them experience playing in very intense games, close games, games filled with pressure, especially for your freshmen and sophomores. They’re so nervous in the intensity of that moment. Hopefully, they’ll be able to come to that prepared for that moment.”
Coach Cribby is entering her fifth year as coach but has worked with several members of her team for many years when she coached in the youth program, several of them with PYLAX (Pittsburgh Youth Lacrosse).
“Some of these kids I have known since they were in third grade,” coach Cribby said. “It’s really helpful in just understanding what some of their strengths are and just understanding how they respond to different coaching styles. I’m able to adjust my approach based on what I know.”
Coach Cribby said if the team plays to its potential, it will be another successful season.
“Overall, I’m really excited for the season,” she said. “We have a lot of talented and competitive underclassmen, which helps to elevate the group as a whole. I think that will be really good for the program.”