Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 6/20/12
Courtesy of US Lacrosse
Maddie Poplawski grew up having her mother not only as her lacrosse coach, but also as her role model. Poplawski, a rising senior midfielder at the University of Pennsylvania, was raised in a household of successful athletes.
Her father, Mark, played basketball for Temple while her mother, Christina (nee Muller), was an All-American lacrosse goalie for Temple who later won a gold medal with the U.S. women’s team at the 1989 International Federation of Women’s Lacrosse Associations (IFWLA) World Cup in Perth, Australia.
At Springfield-Delco High School in Springfield, Pa., Maddie spent her lacrosse seasons with her mother. Christina works with the goalies at Springfield but the two had more interaction as coach and player for their summer club team, Phantastix.
When asked about the positives to having her mom as her coach and what she learned from her, Maddie said, “…[While] I was not alive to see my mom win national championships or the gold medal, I know that it did not come easily. I aspire to be a competitive athlete like my mother and I’m sure her story of success could only have been achieved by being committed.”
Maddie’s commitment was evident from an early age. During her career at Springfield, she was a four-time Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) district champion, scored 179 goals, fed 61 assists, scooped up 194 ground balls and snagged 215 draw controls.
A co-captain her senior year, her numerous honors included being named a two-time US Lacrosse All-American, US Lacrosse All-Academic honoree and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame-Delaware County Outstanding Scholar Athlete of the Year.
Following her senior season at Springfield, Maddie was one of two recipients of the 2009 Michael Breschi Scholarship, awarded annually by Joe Breschi, current men’s lacrosse head coach at North Carolina, and his wife, Julie. The scholarship is in memory of their 3-year-old son, Michael, who died tragically on March 1, 2004 in an auto accident.
The two graduating high school senior recipients must have a parent that is a coach and teacher at an educational institution, played on their school’s lacrosse team during their senior year, and participated in extracurricular activity, internships, community service, and/or employment.
To learn more about the Michael Breschi Scholarship and/or apply before the July 13, 2012 deadline, please click here.
Maddie was Springfield High School’s National Honor Society president, Executive Student Council president, a Community Service Club member, National Art, Science, World Language and English Societies member and more.
Currently a rising senior at the University of Pennsylvania, Maddie made an impact on and off the lacrosse field from day one of college. In her junior season this spring, she earned unanimous first team All-Ivy League honors, was named to the All-Ivy League Tournament Team, and was a force at both ends of the field for a Quakers team that reached the NCAA tournament. She ranked first on the team in draw controls (61), second in ground balls (27) and caused turnovers (13), third in goals (29), first in draw controls (61) and fourth in points (31).
Off the field, she continues to dedicate her time to serving the community as an active member of the West Philadelphia Tutoring project. “Each fall I am assigned a new student that I work with once a week and help to tutor them in their classes and also in college preparations too (ACTs, SATs),” Maggie said. “I work closely with the student to help track their progress; I like the experience to work with younger students.”
This summer, Poplawski is interning at Barclaycard US in human resources before returning for her senior year in the fall.
Thanks in part to the Michael Breschi Scholarship she received going into her freshman year of college, Maddie has made good use of her time and energy as a Quaker.
Phillylacrosse.com wishes to thank US Lacrosse for the re-production of this article
