Barrie Lindsay of Ipswich is a confident young soccer player, but she had reasonable doubt about getting much playing time this season as a college freshman.
No matter how you looked at it, the 18-year-old Lindsay had to make an enormous transition. She played high school soccer at Beverly's Waring School, which has only 150 students and flies well under the radar athletically.
Now she's at Wheaton College, which is 14-0-1 and has one of the top Division 3 programs in the country. The Lyons are ranked ninth in the country and second in New England by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).
"I thought I'd be watching a lot more than I'd be playing," admitted Lindsay. "Maybe I'd get a few minutes in a (lopsided) game. That's what I was thinking."
Wheaton coach Luis Reis and his team couldn't be happier that Lindsay was wrong.
Seizing the moment against Amherst (which knocked Wheaton out of the NCAA tourney last season), Lindsay scored two goals down the stretch in an emotional 2-1 win over the Lord Jeffs on Sept. 26. She followed that up recently with three assists in Wheaton's 3-2 win over rival Wellesley.
For the season, Lindsay has three goals and seven assists. She's been the starter in five of the team's 15 games for Wheaton, which has been to the NCAA Division 3 tournament for seven straight years.
It's heady stuff for a newcomer, but Lindsay is highly unlikely to have a swelled head over her early success. It's not her personality. Never has been.
"She made her mark against Amherst," said Reis. "We were down a goal with 10 minutes left and I said to her, 'I'm putting you in at forward.' I felt we could use her speed. She scores twice to win it for us, and then after the game she comes over and thanks me. I said, 'Thank you for what?' and she says, 'Thank you for putting me in the game.' That's the way Barrie is - very grateful and appreciative."
Aztec upbringing
Waring coach Jess Ingram can't say she's surprised about Lindsay's impact at the college level or her humility. Ingram, who's been coaching at Waring for seven years, described Lindsay as "head and shoulders" above the competition she faced in the Independent Girls Conference.
Lindsay was the MVP of the league in her senior year and left a legacy at the Beverly school.
"The girls still talk about her," said Ingram. "Barrie had all this ability, but I think she's also remembered for her demeanor and her sportsmanship."
Lindsay's soccer career probably wouldn't have extended beyond Waring - and Wheaton's Reis never would have found her - if she hadn't also played for the Aztecs, a Beverly-based club soccer team.
Lindsay started playing for Aztec age group teams six years ago and progressed to the women's team, which had college players and post-graduates. She was able to refine her game and get accustomed to high caliber competition with the Aztec women's team.
It also helped that two former Wheaton players, Tracey Prihoda and Christy McHugh, played for the Aztec women's team. They thought Lindsay would be a good fit for Wheaton, as did Aztec women's head coach Doc Simpson.
Mike Kersker, one of the founders of the Aztec organization and now the athletic director at Waring, was also helpful in the recruiting process.
"It was a lot different than Waring," Lindsay said of playing for the Aztecs. "The physical aspect was much harder and it prepared me for college."
Continually improving
Reis felt like he like he discovered a player the old-fashioned way when he saw Lindsay play for the Aztecs. At a small school such as Waring, Lindsay was denied the exposure she would've received playing for a school in the Cape Ann League or the Northeastern Conference. But Waring is hidden in that sense, so it was important for Reis to see Lindsay's potential through her affiliation with the Aztecs.
"Barrie got in with the right club at the right time," said Reis. "A couple of our alums (Prihoda and McHugh) said, 'Coach, here's a kid that nobody knows about.' When I saw Lindsay play for the Aztecs, I was impressed with her breakaway speed and her technical ability, and she was pretty smart."
Earlier this season, Lindsay was getting knocked off the ball a lot, said Reis. But she has impressed her teammates with her ability to adapt to the college game.
"She's getting better with every game," said Erin Davis, a senior defender who earned All-America status for Wheaton last season. "Barrie is improving by leaps and bounds. She's a dangerous player because she's so fast and technical.
"I think she has deceptive speed because she makes it look easy. She can really burn opponents on the outside. She's also a great teammate."
Although she's now playing for an ambitious college program, Lindsay will always have strong ties to Waring. Her older brother, Jack, played soccer there, and her mother was the athletic director at the school. It was a family atmosphere in every way, and she values what she learned there both on and off the field.
"The adjustment to college really hasn't been that much of a shock," said Lindsay. "Our Waring team had the same attitude that we have at Wheaton. It's team oriented, with a lot of pride in the school and the program. There's a lot of sportsmanship. It's the same mentality at both schools."
Meet Barrie Lindsay
Age: 18
Hometown: Ipswich
High school soccer accolades: All-star selection and MVP of the Independent Girls Conference at Waring School in Beverly.
Current status: Has started five games as a freshman at Wheaton College, ranked No. 9 in the country in Division 3.
Stats: 3 goals and 7 assists in 15 games
Wheaton's streak: The Lyons have an 82-game unbeaten streak in the NEWMAC (New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference), making it the nation's longest streak in any division.
