Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 12/24/13
From Press Release
James Madison lacrosse will welcome seven new players in the fall of 2014, as head coach Shelley Klaes-Bawcombe announced their signings to National Letters of Intent today. Annie Dell, Corinne Schmidt, Morgan Hardt, Rebecca Tooker, Hayley Warden, Elena Romesburg and Shannon Quinlan will join the Dukes next season.
“This group is high energy, high confidence,” Klaes-Bawcombe stated. “They are hard-nosed, tough players who are not afraid to play a physical game and we’re really excited about that.”
Hayley Warden is from Glen Mills, Pa., where she is a senior at Garnet Valley High School. As a junior, she tallied First Team All-Delaware Country honors after honorable mention accolades as a freshman and sophomore. She also earned All-Phillylacrosse.com, Honorable Mention All-Central League and Honorable Mention All-American in 2013. During high school, she has competed on both the varsity soccer and basketball squads as well as participated in the National Honors Society and Spanish National Honors Society.
“Hayley is really polished,” Klaes-Bawcombe stated. “She’s a strong, agile player who has great composure on the ball and makes great decisions under pressure. She has a nice, physical stature to be able to come up with the draw and just has great hands so she’s able to place it and control it to give us the best shot to come up with it. She’s very versatile, has great lacrosse IQ and, again, has that competitive edge that we’re looking for.”
Elena Romesburg, a native of Chalfont, Pa., is a two-time First Team All-Continental League and Second Team All-Phillylacrosse.com honoree from Central Bucks High School West. As a junior in 2013, she scored her 100th-career goal in the opening game of the season (176 total). She also led the Bucks in ground balls and draw controls for the third straight season and caused turnovers for the second straight season. The 2013 team Most Valuable Player is on the distinguished honor roll and in the National Honors society as well as a member of the field hockey and track & field squads.
“Elena is a power pellet, a little spitfire out there, “Klaes-Bawcombe described. “She is always giving her maximum effort and always seems to be in the right place at the right time. She comes up with all of the loose balls and does all the dirty work for the team. She’s passionate and she’s a leader.”
Rebecca Tooker currently attends Eastport South Manor Junior/Senior High School in Manorville, N.Y. As a junior, she was named both an All-American and Academic All-American and garnered First Team All-Long Island, All-Tournament and All-County accolades. She was a Newsday Top 30 Player to Watch in August of 2013 and has competed for the Sharks on the lacrosse, soccer, track and basketball teams. The honor roll student is a member of both the National Honors Society and the World Language Honor Society.
“Rebecca is gritty, physical and understands positioning and how to take space away,” Klaes-Bawcombe explained. “She has great angles on the defensive end but also knows how to have that presence off ball. We’re excited about her confidence and competitiveness and how she goes after the game.”
Annie Dell hails from Westminster, Md., and currently attends North Carroll High School. She is a two-sport athlete for the Panthers, competing on both the girls’ varsity lacrosse team and the girls’ varsity soccer team, while remaining an honor-roll student and plays club lacrosse with Check-Hers Elite. Following the 2013 season, she earned First Team All-Carroll County Girl’s Lacrosse honors and Second Team All-Monocacy Valley Athletic League Girl’s Lacrosse honors.
“Annie is a midfielder that has great speed, great hands and great feet who has a knack for scoring without having blinders on,” Klaes-Bawcombe described. “She is a team-focused player, and we’re really excited about her hard work and teamwork coming into this program.”
Corinne Schmidt is a native of Brightwaters, N.Y., where she attends Bay Shore High School. She helped lead the Marauders to back-to-back Suffolk County championships (2012, 2013) as well as an appearance in the 2013 Long Island Championship game. She also plays field hockey and soccer for Bay Shore while on the high honor roll and competing in club lacrosse for the Long Island Yellow Jackets, Blue Team.
“Corinne has a physical, tough, gritty style and is a focused player,” Klaes-Bawcombe said. “We’re going to take her tough intensity with her strong lacrosse IQ and try to mold them together for the perfect defender.”
Morgan Hardt competes for Guilderland High School, the reigning Section II, Class A girl’s lacrosse champions in Guilderland, N.Y. In 2013, she earned First Team All-American honors and Academic All-American accolades, as well as the Times Union Athlete of the Year. She was voted the Dutchmen’s Most Valuable Player last year after posting the highest number of goals scored in Section II and participated in the Under Armour All-American tournament for the Upstate New York squad. On the club level, the honor roll student competes for the Albany Elite.
“She’s got great hands in front of the cage, she’s got height and vision to be able to see and pass over the defensive units,” Klaes-Bawcombe pronounced. “She’s also a great target with that height and somebody that we feel moves very well off ball, and somebody that we’re hoping to be able to capitalize in front of the goal.”
Shannon Quinlan comes from Wilton, Conn., and attends Wilton High School where the honor roll student has competed on the lacrosse, basketball and track & field squads. For lacrosse, she has helped lead the Warriors to the Connecticut Class M State Championship game each of the last three seasons. She has been named to the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference ‘Watch List’ twice (2012, 2013). In 2013, she participated in both the Under Armour All-American underclass tournament and the U.S. Lacrosse National Tournament with the Lower New England team.
“Shannon is a track star and has become an All-American in track,” Klaes-Bawcombe boasted. “We’re hoping to be able to take that speed, size and intensity and transfer her into an excellent lacrosse athlete. We’re really excited about her enthusiasm!”
The Dukes open the 2013 season on Feb. 15 as they host Virginia Tech for a 1 p.m. match at University Park.
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