Sophie: I went to Wee Burn. I used to swim and dive, too. It’s super fun.
Caylee: Tennis is strong at Wee Burn, right?
Sophie: Yeah, but I mean, we get crushed by Middlesex. I play hockey and soccer as well.
Caylee: Oh, jealous. I always wanted to do hockey. Early wakeup calls.
Sophie: What advice would you give girls going through the recruiting process?
Caylee: Make sure you’re always having fun with the sport. For me, I was just there with my friends. It was never too intense. We knew what goals we had, but we made sure to have fun with it. Also, don’t be too hard on yourself. Things will work out. You do have to make sacrifices, pave your own path and be committed to that. But certainly, have fun.
Sophie: Do you have any superstitions?
Caylee: It’s gone through phases, all of them relating to food. In high school, I used to like eating a turkey sandwich from Mama’s (Mama Carmela’s Italian Deli in Darien). I miss that place. I love the turkey sandwich on a hard roll. Then when I got to college, I would eat French toast before every game. Like, a ton of French toast. I have such a sweet tooth.
Sophie: Who was your most influential coach?
Caylee: Phil Barnes is the assistant coach at Carolina. He focuses on the goalies. He came at goalkeeping from a different angle than me. I very much just relied on my athleticism. He knew that could only take me so far. He really pushed me, breaking down the position, focusing on angles and understanding these small elements of the game.
Sophie: Lisa Lindley runs CT Grizzlies. I do clinics with her now. I’ll be playing at the high school next year and hopefully for her. She definitely has a very distinct coaching style. She pushes everyone and always makes us more competitive with each other.
Caylee: Yeah, you definitely want to play at a high level when Lisa’s watching.
Sophie: When did you fall in love with lacrosse? And when did you know you wanted to play in college?
Caylee: After my freshman season at Darien, we lost in the FCIAC playoffs. There was an 8-meter scored on me. It was just so sad, just feeling like there was unfinished business and that there was more of me to show — there was more I could grow in this sport. That’s when I fell in love. It was hard to lose, and just having that hunger to get back on the field with the team. It wasn’t until my sophomore year that I received an email from Lisa about a college coach who was interested in me. I remember just freezing. “Whoa. OK, this is real.” That following summer, I went to a couple of camps and was like, “Yeah, this is what I want. I want to play with girls across the country and bring my game up to the next level.”