BY MATT STOUT
The Salem girls lacrosse team owes a lot of where it is right now to Meagan Schadlick and Christina Miano. The pair hopes that one day the Southern New Hampshire University women’s lacrosse team can say the same thing.
After picking up lacrosse as freshmen in high school and, in turn, helping to lift the Blue Devils to a playoff win in each of their senior years, Schadlick and Miano – cousins by birth but sisters by choice – figure prominently into the Penmen’s future plans now that the Salem natives are a sophomore and freshman, respectively.
Following a 10-8 loss to Merrimack College on Tuesday, April 24, No. 10 SNHU, which earned its first ever ranking in the latest IWLCA Division II national poll, stands at 8-3 and 6-2 in the Northeast-10, and is in prime position to capture a top-four seed in the conference tournament set for early May.
Defenders Schadlick and Miano have seen varying time behind a senior and a graduate student this year, but they understand their contributions – both past and expected – are more spelled out.
Last season, Schadlick was part of a Penmen squad that claimed both its first playoff berth and victory against Bentley College. This season, as the two have reunited, the attitudes, stick skills and experience in program-building they’ve brought have helped elevate their team to contender status in just its fourth year as a program.
“We earned where we were,” Miano said of the pair’s time at Salem, where Schadlick was actually one of the original four members who helped start the club program. “And it’s the same thing here. This team earned its position.”
Yet, as much as Schadlick and Miano were attracted by the opportunity to help develop another young program, it was their desire to remain close both on and off the field that ultimately brought them to Manchester.
The two went to elementary, middle and high school together, playing not only lacrosse but volleyball on the same teams. Schadlick is Miano’s “role model,” while Miano is Schadlick’s “support system.”
Their games, of course, also have similarities. SNHU coach Mary Squire said they both have advanced stick skills for defenders, a talent they developed when they realized it wasn’t their speed that would carry them, said Salem coach Faith Wahlen.
“Sometimes we have to really get Schaddy to get rid of the ball because sometimes she wants to hang on to it too long,” Squire said, laughing.
They have their differences, too. Wahlen described Schadlick as a physical player and a vocal presence Salem team. Miano is more of a thinker who quickly studies her advancing opponent before attacking, though both traits have translated well into a SNHU defense that leads the league in caused turnovers.
“In practice, we just have to work our butts off,” Schadlick said. “It’s just (about) working our way up and supporting everyone when they’re in, watching what they do.
But it’s very exciting knowing next year we’re going to be the up-and-coming team and ... (we’re) playing key roles for the defense,” she added.
After traveling last spring to catch each other’s games, reuniting certainly makes it all the more enjoyable. Yet, being together, Miano said, was always in the plans.
“They like to start things,” Wahlen said. “They’re very big into building, and they’re very good at building things together.”