By Molly Tow
Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 8/4/11
Manheim Township High School rising junior midfielder Molly Hendrick has made a verbal commitment to play Division I lacrosse at the University of North Carolina.
Hendrick was part of a Manheim Township team that finished undefeated in the Lancaster-Lebanon League (18-0), won the District 3 title and advanced to the state tournament. Hendrick was named a 2011 All-League player and All-Section player, was selected for the Central PA National Tournament Team in both 2010 and 2011, and selected for the 2011 Philadelphia Underclassmen Under Armour Team.
Hendrick, who plays club lacrosse for TLC Lacrosse, has also been on the Honor Roll at Manheim Township for her first two years of high school, and is a member of the SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) club.
While at UNC, Hendrick plans to study Exercise Science.
“I developed an interest in UNC for many reasons,” said Hendrick. “One is the strength and success of their lacrosse program. Two is the Exercise Science major. This is a major I have decided to pursue, and UNC has an excellent program and are leaders in this field.
“The third reason I focused on UNC is the great coaching staff that they have. During the UNC camp and my visits to campus, I felt a strong connection to the coaches and their goals for the women’s lacrosse program.”
Hendrick was one of the first of the class of 2013 to commit to UNC. Rising seniors in Philadelphia committed to playing lacrosse at UNC are midfielder Alyssa Andress (Archbishop Wood) and midfielder Stephanie Lobb (West Chester East).
Other Manheim Township players that have made commitments to play college lacrosse are midfielder Megan Pinkerton (Temple), midfield Carolyn Westphal (Brown), midfielder Devon Schneider (Florida), and goalie Shannon Nee (Connecticut).
Manheim Township, which went 23-1 overall, won its third straight District 3 championship in 2011. In postseason play, the Blue Streaks lost in the first round of the state tournament to Great Valley. Hendrick feels that Manheim Township owes much of its success to its team chemistry.
“I think our Manheim Township High School team had an overall good year,” said Hendrick. “Everyone on the team is very close and we are all great friends. I think that is one of the reasons we are successful on the field.
“We can almost know what people are going to do on the field, because we have been playing together for so long. When I’m on the field, I know that I’m surrounded by so much talent from my teammates that it makes it really fun to play. Our team has a great bond and it shows on the field.”
Hendrick would like to see the Blue Streaks continue their dominance in 2012.
“Some of the goals for the upcoming season are to keep our league and district titles,” said Hendrick. “One of our bigger goals is to get further in states and have a chance to win them.”
