COACH OF THE YEAR
* Courtney Vaughn, Liberty -- This no-nonsense coach has built a girls lacrosse dynasty in Carroll County, winning five straight county titles and compiling a 66-26 record in seven seasons at Liberty. This season Vaughn took the Lions a step beyond their county domination with three convincing playoff victories (63-24 margin in goals) to reach the state 1A-2A championship game against powerful Loch Raven. Vaughn predicted before the season started that Liberty would be meeting Loch Raven for the title, but she obviously figured her team would give the Raiders a better game (19-7 loss). Moments after that setback, Vaughn said Loch Raven took Liberty out of its renowned transition game by slowing the ball down and running its offense. "That's how the game is played at the next level," she said. Vaughn will be out to take the Lions to that next level next season. Liberty is 29-3 over the past two seasons and will upgrade its schedule next season to prepare for the likes of Loch Raven (99-2 in past seven years).
FIRST TEAM AT A GLANCE
* Debbi Bourke, Liberty, Jr., midfield -- One of many Liberty players with top-notch speed, Bourke has the entire package to make her an exceptional player. If Bourke (5 feet 4) were a little taller, she might be unstoppable at any position. This junior can play attack, midfield and defense and makes things happen. "Debbi is small but plays big," said her coach, Vaughn. "She won't back down from anybody and knows just how far to give ground when defending a player. In the midfield she creates and on attack she could be a big-time scorer if we needed her." Bourke played attack as a sophomore before moving to defense and midfield this season, and she could be going back to attack next season when the Lions lose Nathalie Skovron, Megan Horneman and Kym Frey, who combined for 190 goals this season.
* Tracie DiDio, South Carroll, Sr., midfield -- One of the best athletes to play for South Carroll coach Stacy Stem, DiDio was a marked girl from the first day of the season to the last. She was double- and triple-teamed after leading the Cavaliers to the state 3A-4A girls lacrosse championship game last year. It took awhile for DiDio to adjust to all the pressure in lacrosse after facing the same kind of pressure in field hockey last fall. She came on to score 40 goals and hand out 15 assists and helped the Cavaliers (8-6) make the 3A West Regionals. Off the field, DiDio compiled a 4.0 grade-point average and received an academic scholarship to the University of Maryland, where she will play field hockey. "Tracie is the one you want to have the ball in a crucial situation," said Stem. "She has so much talent. It's incredible to watch her play."
* Carey Epler, Liberty, Jr., defense -- Two years ago, no one would have expected this girl to be making first team All-County. She started to play lacrosse in the ninth grade, but has improved immensely every day to become one of the top two defenders on a 16-2 team that was ranked as high as No. 5 in the metro area. Epler is very quick, good on ground balls, sees the ball well on opposing attackers and has surprising strength for her size (5 feet 3). Her coach, Vaughn, said Epler can "come out of nowhere to make a big defensive play."
* Kym Frey, Liberty, Sr., attack -- It's hard to imagine how a player can score 56 goals and also find time to hand out 59 assists. But Frey is one of those special high school players who thinks as much about passing as shooting. She is strong enough to beat defenders one-on-one and send a cannon shot into the net, clever enough to pass the ball just at the right moment and seems to see every open teammate. The amazing thing for Frey is that she had a better season this year statistically than last, when she was Carroll County Player of the Year, but couldn't win the award again because of the all-around super season of teammate Megan Horneman. Frey had 37 goals and 41 assists as a junior in 14 games. She most likely will attend Frostburg State and play lacrosse.
* Natalie Hannibal, Liberty, Jr., defense -- One of the fastest players on a team that thrived on speed, Hannibal was able to stay in the spotlight even though she played defense. It was impossible to overlook No. 13, who was constantly harassing the top offensive gun for the other team. Hannibal already has
established herself as the top defender to play at Liberty in the seven years the school has fielded a girls lacrosse team. She led the team in interceptions, was superb at playing denial defense and had a great field sense, according to her coach, Vaughn. Hannibal is considered a potential Division I college player.
* Katie Rockwell, South Carroll, Jr., defense -- In a season that began with disappointment and ended with promise, Rockwell was consistently strong on defense in front of goalie Erin Nauyalis. She used good quickness and discipline to halt opposing scorers and drew the task of defending Liberty's Horneman in the second game of the season between the neighborhood rivals. Rockwell did a good job of containing Horneman and Liberty for a half before the Lions broke loose for a 17-10 victory. It was the closest any county team came to upsetting Liberty this season.
* Amie Rose, Liberty, Jr., midfield -- Think about Rose's plight. She scored 25 goals in 18 games and barely got a call when it came time to add up the top scorers for the Lions. But there were many other contributions this smallish girl made to Lib
erty's march to a second-place finish in the state 1A-2A playoffs. She was adept at getting the ball from midfield to attack, did anything for the good of the team, and often weaved her way through much taller players to score goals. It could be that Rose will get her recognition next season when the Lions come back and try to take the one last step to a state title.
* Nathalie Skovron, Liberty, Sr., attack -- This determined athlete enjoyed one of the biggest turnarounds ever by a high school player in any sport in Carroll County. As a junior, she didn't even gain honorable mention but as a senior Skovron was flirting with Player of the Year status. She scored 76 goals in 18 games and dominated opposing county players who were her size or a little bigger. Skovron scored 18 goals in two games against Westminster. It wasn't until Skovron (5 feet 3) ran up against Loch Raven's 5-8 Anne Heine that she was stopped. Known for her ability to shift speeds on the way to the goal, Skovron once beat seven players to score against C. W. Baker from Baldwinsville, N.Y., in the Mount Hebron Easter tournament.
* Tiffany Weal, Westminster, Sr., attack -- At times, Weal was virtually the whole offense for the Owls, who finished 4-8 overall and 2-4 in the county. She scored the first three goals of the game against Liberty and wound up with seven en route to a 45-goal season. The senior's other big game was nine goals and one assist in a 20-17 victory over North Carroll. Weal was exceptional at coming from behind the net and scoring. Westminster coach Suzanne Peters said if she needed a goal "I just screamed, 'Tiffany!, and she would usually get it for me." But she wasn't a ball hog, said Peters.
* Jaime Wheat, Westminster, Sr., goalie -- On a team that only won four games, it was hard for Wheat to get a lot of recognition. But she showed South Carroll something in the net, keeping the Owls in the game before they lost 10-8 and 8-5 decisions. And she was superb against an outstanding Annapolis team, making 10 saves in a 14-6 loss to the Panthers and their Division I-bound attacker Cristi Samaras (headed for Princeton or Maryland). Wheat even took time out to praise Samaras for one of the goals she scored against Westminster. "Jaime did everything right on that goal," said Peters. "She was in the right position and was ready for the ball, but Samaras just put it by her."
* Erin Windsor, South Carroll, Sr., attack -- Her coach, Stem, says Windsor is one of the most improved players in the county. She had to carry the South Carroll scoring load early in the season until the talented DiDio got going for the Cavaliers, who won seven of their last nine to gain respect and an 8-6 record. Windsor was a team leader and would gladly give the ball up to a teammate if she felt that player had a better chance of scoring. Thanks to Windsor and DiDio, South Carroll spurted enough down the stretch to make the regionals.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
* Megan Horneman, Liberty, Sr., Midfield -- Perhaps North Carroll coach Jodi Shipley best described the respect Horneman has in Carroll County girls lacrosse circles: "I've admired Megan Horneman for four years. She is so strong a player and so talented." Horneman (58 goals, 12 assists) had to have a lot of talent this season to earn the top player award in competition with her two extremely gifted teammates, Kym Frey (56 goals, 59 assists) and Nathalie Skovron (76 goals, 21 assists). Horneman is a natural athlete who would be good at any sport she plays. She has speed, agility, quickness, intelligence, strength and endurance. She has been given a scholarship to play midfield for George Mason, earned honorable mention high school All-America, made the West team in the Lacrosse for the Leukemia game and was a strong candidate for Carroll County Player of the Year last season when Frey won the award. In short, Horneman was spectacular and fit in perfectly with Liberty's vaunted transition game. "Megan knows when to pass and when to keep the ball," said her coach, Courtney Vaughn. "She's very explosive and is a tremendous athlete. She can beat people one-on-one or find the open man."