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Princeton Packet Girls’ Soccer Player of the Year

McClintic made MHS girls into winners

By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
  Lauren McClintic has seen some big changes in four seasons in the Montgomery High School girls’ soccer program.
   She came in as highly regarded midfielder, who had also played defense for her club team. She was good enough to step in at center midfield for the Cougars as a freshman. But midway through that season, she moved forward and has remained there over her final three seasons to become the top goal scorer in program history.
   ”I do like forward,” McClintic said. “It’s more exhilarating. It’s such a rush. When you get that goal or go at a player, it’s so fun. That’s what soccer is all about for me.”
   McClintic’s move forward coincided with the Cougars’ steady climb. As a sophomore, she helped them earn a Group III state championship. As a junior, they reached their first Central Jersey Group IV final where she scored their lone goal. And as a senior, she and the Cougars took on overwhelming expectations.
   ”For us, the seniors, we had a lot of pressure to be perfect,” McClintic said. “When you look back, I think were. We may not have won everything, but we played our hearts out. It was the most memorable season I’ve had.”
   McClintic wasn’t given any space to operate this season. MHS got every opponent’s best and came through with an 18-3-1 record. They reached the Somerset County Tournament final and won their first Skyland Conference Delaware East Division championship, showing the penchant for delivering more consistently than any other team in a difficult division.
   McClintic led the way on offense with 20 goals — one off her school record — to go with 13 assists in her final season for the Cougars before heading to the College of the Holy Cross to continue her career.
   ”I’m going to miss a lot about her,” said MHS head coach Jeremy Beardsley. “This kid is very special to me. I get emotional just thinking about her and all the things she did for this program are amazing. A goal scorer is a goal scorer, but you need kids who have the composure in the big spots to execute. For the years leading up to when she came, I always said, you need a girl who can step up in the defining moment. We didn’t have it until Lauren came and moved to front line.”
   Lauren McClintic is the Princeton Packet Girls’ Soccer Player of the Year.
   ”It’s not a coincidence that we had a 20-goal scorer and we won all these games,” Beardsley said. “We have this timely goal scorer and all this success has followed her. It’s directly related to her. It’s not just scoring goals, it’s scoring timely, big, significant game-winning or game-tying goals.”
   The Cougars had big pieces to the puzzle in talented defenders and midfielders. Moving McClintic forward was one of the final pieces that helped push the Cougars to being one of the state’s top teams with expectations for them climbing as the school district did. The Cougars weren’t sneaking up on anyone this season. McClintic noticed she was drawing more attention than ever.
   ”I think it’s a situation where she did what she did this year, which was tremendous, with every school we played prepared and keying on her,” Beardsley said. “They were saying, if we stand a chance, this girl has to be held in check.
   ”To do what she did, that’s what makes this year really, really special. You could say some times didn’t know about her junior year. They did senior year.”
   McClintic still came up with huge goals for the Cougars. She headed in the winning goal in their SCT semifinal win over Hillsborough, then provided the tying goal against Pingry in the SCT final. She scored the game-winner as the Cougars secured their first conference title by beating Bridgewater-Raritan.
   ”Overall, I was happy about that,” she said. “I think I had more assists this year. It’s not just about scoring goals. It’s about playing to other people. A lot of people who didn’t get goals last year, got some. It was definitely more of a team effort to score goals, not just on me.”
   Opponents were happy to try to take away McClintic’s goal-scoring. But even with two people marking her at times, McClintic was hard to stop for a simple reason. She just outworked opponents, outhustled them, playing with little regard for her body. While her position and expectations changed in her career, her all-out style of play did not.
   ”That’s what moved me to make a decision to move her up front because I wanted to preserve her,” Beardsley said. “She got knocked out about two weeks as a freshman. I thought maybe I would take away from some of the combative movements by putting her up top. She never left that spot.”
   Added McClintic: “I feel like if anything I’ve tried to be a little more of a playmaker. There’s such an intensity and competitiveness about myself. There’s a rush that comes over me. I can’t help but run through people or get hit. I think some kids are a little intimidated by it. I’m not the kind of girl who will be afraid to run through a hard tackle.”
   Her style of play and her ability to finish made her a natural leader for the Cougars. Taking on a senior captain role was something new this season.
   ”Her additional value came off the field,” Beardsley said. “She was one of four captains and she was the vocal one. She was motivating them and inspiring them. She led by example for sure, but she was also vocal about getting the job done. So now there’s this added component making her even more complete of a player.
   ”The way she trained inspired,” he added. “She trained so hard. She competed so hard. If we were doing fitness, she might have been tired and might have wanted to give 50 percent. She’s an All-Area player and Player of the Year for the Packet and she’s All-State. There’s a good chance she’ll be All-American, and she was always pushing through. She always gave 100 percent. If she does it, it shows everyone. That goes a long way for a program. She’s left that legacy as well.”
   McClintic will add to her own resume when she continues her career at Holy Cross. She has already been tabbed an attacking midfielder or forward after showing she has the mindset to be a top scorer.
   ”For high school, I want to be the star,” McClintic said. “I know it sounds bad. All of us want to be the best and win it for our school and our team. When it comes to club, it’s playing teams all around the country and improving your skills. It’s a different environment.
   ”I don’t consider myself the star. It’s not just me working out there. I’m not the only star on our team. So many people stepped it up this year. We all did so well.”
   Lauren McClintic was a big factor in the Cougars success. The same success she brought to the MHS girls’ soccer program will be something she looks to duplicate next year at Holy Cross.
   ”I’m going to miss so many things about Montgomery,” she said. “I can’t believe it’s over. Beardsley, he was the best coach I had. He cared so much. We had mostly seniors and juniors with a few sophomores this year. Overall, our team chemistry and togetherness were so close. We told each other everything. It was really a great memorable season.”
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