Freedman tabbed MaxPreps National Girls Lacrosse POY

RADNOR, Pa. – The Monday afterward was tough. Kelyn Freedman didn’t know exactly what to do with herself on what normally would be another day of lacrosse practice. The Radnor High School (Radnor, Pa.) senior’s season had ended a few days prior, this year’s PIAA state championship medal hanging next to last year's medal was proof of that.

It finally dawned on the 5-foot-11 midfielder that this was it, no more high school lacrosse. No more two-hour practices in the sweltering spring heat that she looked forward to, no more bus rides with her teammates and a respite from making up new creative shots to perplex goalies.

Freedman will be heading to Georgetown in August, embarking on a new phase of her life as a Hoya. What she’ll leave behind is a legacy that could be remembered for decades as the greatest female athlete to ever graduate Radnor High School and as one of the most versatile female athletes to ever emerge from Southeastern Pennsylvania.

She's getting ready to add another laurel to an incredible list of accomplishments that includes being a two-time Pennsylvania state lacrosse champion, Radnor’s all-time leading scorer in basketball (1,225 points) and the school’s all-time leading scorer in lacrosse with 436 points (217 goals and 219 assists) over 95 games.

To top off an amazing career and spectacular senior season Freedman can tack on MaxPreps National Player of the Year to her growing list of accolades.

It's well deserved.

As a four-year starter, Freedman’s Radnor teams went 88-7 and 76-2 over the last three years (including 26-1 this year). The PIAA instituted the first state-wide lacrosse championship last year. Led by Freedman, the Red Raiders, who finished 2010 ranked No. 6 nationally by MaxPreps, won the state crown for the second-straight year.

She had 90 goals, 111 assists and a school-record 201 points for the season. On top of that, she contributed 103 groundballs, 106 draw controls, caused 48 turnovers and had 15 interceptions.

That brought her career numbers to 436 points, 283 career draw controls, 210 ground balls, 125 caused turnovers and 55 interceptions. If the Red Raiders needed a burst of offense, there was Freedman scoring a big goal during a regular-season game against Central League rival Springfield, with two girls draped all over her as she scored falling down.

Or if she had to sacrifice offense for the better of the team, there was Freedman manning up against the opposition's most dangerous scoring threat and shutting her down.

Radnor coach Phyllis Kilgour is a coaching legend in one of the most competitive lacrosse areas of the country. She has been around lacrosse since wooden sticks were in vogue. Kilgour is old-school, not prone to hyperbole when it comes to talking about any of her players or teams. Not prone, however, until the subject of Freedman is broached.

“Kelyn is simply the best player I ever had,” Kilgour said without hesitation. “I’ve had a lot of great, great players, and a lot of great teams, but this, I have to say, is the best player I've ever had here at Radnor and this past season is the best team I’ve ever coached. Kelyn is someone who could do it all, and that’s what made her so special.

“We could count on her to do anything, and she played very well within what we do as a team. Some star players like the spotlight and they like to dominate the game. Not Kelyn, she’s humble and she’s worked very hard to make herself so exceptional. She made sure her teammates were involved, and she made her teammates better. That’s a true star player in my book.”

This has been a bittersweet time for Freedman. She was overjoyed to win another state championship before she graduated; as well as overwhelmed by the postseason award she's received as MaxPreps' National Player of the Year.

But the 14-7 victory over archrival Springfield in the state championship game on June 12 was tough to take in some respects. It ended an amazing chapter of an amazing athlete.

“It has been kind of sad,” Freedman admitted. “I remember going over on the bus to the state championship game and feeling a little sad. We were all singing and joking on our way to the game and it dawned on me how much I’ll miss this, and miss my teammates. This is a special group of seniors that are leaving so many great memories behind. I got a little emotional before the game. Then I sat back and wanted to take everything in.”

Freedman kept saying all season that Radnor had not played its best game. The Red Raiders had it bottled up and unleashed it in the state title game on Springfield, a team that gave Radnor fits during the regular season and in the district playoffs. Radnor scored the game’s first five goals on the way to an emphatic victory--which included two goals from Freedman along with a superlative defensive effort.

“You know, it’s funny,” Radnor junior goalie Annie Woehling said. “Kelyn is one of those people you want to hate because she’s so perfect at everything she does, but you can’t because she’s Kelyn; she’s the ultimate team player. She’s humble, and she’s one of a kind, but you wouldn’t know it by the way she carries herself. She’s made me a better player by facing her shots every day in practice. In a way, she’s made everyone on our team better by raising the bar so high.”

Freedman will take some time off this summer, maybe play some summer-league basketball, then begin training for Georgetown, where she has a lacrosse scholarship.

“This has been a great time of my life,” Freedman said. “We’ve done so much, and I think the biggest thing about leaving high school is that I have no regrets. You see high school athletes all of the time looking back on wishing they could have done this or could have done that, and what games they didn’t win. That never happened to me. I could leave with no regrets.”

Joseph Santoliquito covers high schools for the Philadelphia Daily News and is a contributor to MaxPreps.com. He can be contacted at JSantoliquito@yahoo.com.