After being named Catonsville Times female Co-Athlete of the Year as a junior, Lauren McDonald wasted little time proving she would be a strong candidate to repeat early in her fall soccer season.
In Catonsville's first game against a Baltimore County foe, McDonald beat her defender down the sideline and sent a soft left-footed lob to the waiting head of Renee Gast who scored the game-tying goal with 32 seconds left in regulation of a 1-1 tie with Perry Hall.
It was the first of many clutch plays McDonald would make on the soccer and lacrosse fields and on the basketball court.
That earned her repeat selection as co-athlete of the year.
She shares the 2015 honor with Maja Wichhart after sharing the 2014 award with Jenn Nonn.
McDonald knew early on how big a game Perry Hall was, having played against them in three of her four years on varsity.
She missed her sophomore season after she injured her knee in a pre-season scrimmage and was forced to have surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
She was not prepared to let Perry Hall get a leg up on the heated rivalry.
"I can't tell you how much I and the whole team wanted to win this game," said McDonald after that early-season tie. "Perry Hall is a great team and every year, it's going to be a fight."
Obviously, the dramatic goal paid off because Catonsville met Perry Hall again in the Class 4A North Region semifinals and the Comets prevailed, 3-1.
McDonald was a key defender on the Comet squad that finished 11-3-3 and lost to Howard in the regional finals.
That came a year after she switched from midfield to goalie during midseason and helped lead the Comets to the state championship.
They eventually lost in the state finals and that ended their 16-game winning streak, but McDonald proved she was fully recovered from the knee surgery and could play anywhere on the field to help her team.
That philosophy carried over to the basketball court and coach Mike Mohler was the beneficiary.
"We ended up moving her to point guard because we thought it was the best decision at the time," Mohler said. "I think she played every position except for the post and she kept asking, 'One of these days let me play there so I've played all five positions.' She certainly played four of the five positions on the floor."
Mohler also coached Wichhart, who started along with McDonald on the basketball court.
"They are just two great kids. They are phenomenal kids," Mohler said.
They were also winners.
In four years on varsity the Comets went 81-18 and McDonald played in three of the those seasons, missing her sophomore year because of the knee surgery.
McDonald wasn't a typical lightning-quick point guard that liked to penetrate and dish.
"She has really, really, really good strength which is key because she could throw a long cross court pass on a bullet to make sure it would get there," Mohler said.
She averaged three assists, three points, and two rebounds.
"Lauren was a terrific rebounding guard too," Mohler said. "To have a guard rebound as well as she did is important."
She also contributed 41 steals and 20 deflections and didn't hesitate diving on the floor for a loose ball like her classmates Wichhart and Renee Gast.
"They were great seniors, just really good kids," Mohler said of the trio. "You didn't ever have to worry about them playing hard. That was a given. They put it all out there all the time."
First-year Catonsville High lacrosse coach Cantey Evans saw that in McDonald.
"She is the first one in that pile," Evans said.
McDonald, an All-County First Team selection and the team's Most Valuable Player, was also tops in the scorebook.
She led the 12-6 Comets in scoring (92 points), goals (62) and assists (30), but she didn't pile up the points against inferior foes.
"Most of her games when she had multiple goals were not against the lower end teams. They were against the better teams," Evans said. "Against the lower end teams she would have so many more assists. She was really a team player and she didn't want to pad her stats. As a coach, that is ultimately what you want."
In her final two lacrosse seasons she amassed 111 goals and 61 assists.
Evans knew she had a leader the moment she met her in December while she was playing basketball.
"She was a leader from the start with the girls," said Evans, noting McDonald encouraged the girls to work out and get in shape for lacrosse season. "Preparing for the next thing is always on her mind."
That leadership carried onto the turf.
"She is just a natural leader on the field," Evans said.
Her work ethic and attitude was unmatched and that should help when she plays lacrosse nearby at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
"I think she is going to do so well," Evans said. "She is such a hard worker. I know she has been extremely dedicated to her workouts, already preparing for the season, and I'm not surprised at all."
Her extreme competitiveness and desire to win should also help at the next level.
"I think she is someone who knows what it takes to be better than the person next to her and she is going to give everything that she has," Evans said.