In her four years at the helm of the Jackson High School lacrosse team, coach Lori Johnson has helped groom several players to perform at the college level.
Caitlyn Dragon, Jackson’s all-time leading scorer, received a full scholarship to play at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York. Ashley Schauder is on the roster at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.
The latest Lady Jaguar to draw interest from college coaches is senior Chrissie Carleton, who signed a national letter of intent last week to play at Long Island University, New York, next fall.
"I think that it is a good choice for her," Johnson said. "It is a brand-new program. They’re looking to recruit players. I think that she’ll have an opportunity to grow and play in their program right away."
LIU coach Dawn Shrunk knows Johnson. When Shrunk got the job at LIU, one of the first things she did was call local coaches looking for senior players who had not signed. Shrunk called Johnson and the Jackson coach mentioned Carleton’s name.
"She (Shrunk) came and watched Chrissie play and was really impressed with her," Johnson said. "Chrissie went to visit the school and liked it. So far it looks like a pretty good fit. I know the coaching staff there can’t wait for Chrissie to get there."
At 5-foot-3, Carleton isn’t the most imposing player, but her quickness, outstanding stick skills and her ability to drive to goal has made her one of Jackson’s top offensive threats during her four-year career.
"She has grown a lot as a player since she started here," Johnson said. "She works hard at becoming a better lacrosse player. Her stick skills are the area where she has made the biggest improvement."
In Monday’s 15-3 win against visiting St. John Vianney, Holmdel, Carleton scored two to help the Jags improve to 11-0 overall.
"Chrissie has a lot of game sense," Johnson said. "She knows what to do with the ball. She is an excellent passer."
Johnson said Carleton, who has scored eight goals and added 15 assists on the season, is more of a playmaker than scorer. Her unselfishness in the offensive zone, especially around the net, often results in goals for teammates.
"She seems to have a knack for knowing where everybody on the field is," Johnson said.
"She is able to get the ball from the midfield to players deep in the offensive zone in a hurry. She is very good at threading the needle with passes to cutters going through the crease."