Even though Cara Murphy, Candice Lindsay and Elise Young have played together on the women’s basketball team for the last four years, they do not think of themselves as teammates.
Instead, the girls look at one another as sisters.
This Monday, Fairfield women’s basketball honored its three senior players as just that-a family.
Before the last regular season game of the year at Harbor Yard against Siena, all the seniors received recognition for their efforts on and off the court. University President Fr. von Arx, Athletic Director Gene Doris and Head Coach Dianne Nolan handed out individually framed basketball pictures and flowers to the players.
With family members by their sides, the seniors were all smiles as they posed for a group picture at center court.
Head Coach Dianne Nolan said that she will truly miss their dedication and reliability.
“They really hung in and did whatever needed to be done and saw things through,” she said.
In addition to the players’ hard work ethic, Nolan said she will especially miss their ability to laugh.
“They really were able to bring a sense of humor to the team and you need that-in athletics and in life,” she said.
Candice Lindsay, from Brooklyn, N.Y., has been a key contributor to the Stags since she was a freshman. She won MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year during her freshman season and made the All MAAC Rookie team. As a forward, Lindsay averaged 8.1 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game. Her best season came the following year, when she started a career-high 21 games. She finished with 9.0 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per contest. Lindsay has 666 career points, 432 rebounds and 100 steals.
Elise Young, from Franklin, Mass., is a role player who has played in 18 career games for Fairfield. She always has a positive attitude and works hard. As a guard on the scout team, she has helped make everyone around her better. While Young appeared in a career-high eight games this year, the highlight of her career came as a sophomore. Against Rider, she scored back-to-back three-pointers.
Cara Murphy, from Haddon Township, N.J., has been a tremendous player at guard for the past five seasons. In her junior year, she was forced to red-shirt due to injury. As a freshman, she started nine games, scoring at least one basket in four straight games. Her best season came in 2005-2006, when she finished second on the Stags with 10.7 points per game. That same year, she led the team with 56 buckets from behind the arc and was third in the MAAC for made threes. In her career, Murphy has made over 100 three pointers-a feat shared by only four other players in school history. She has also scored over 500 points.
Linsday said she will miss the women’s basketball annual golf outing the most.
“We have to be there all day, we’re just hanging out, and especially we have our fans and people from Fairfield … all coming and supporting us,” she said.
Young’s favorite memories include “any time on the bench when we’re winning … we’re either dancing, falling on the ground, doing something out of control.”
Some of Murphy’s most memorable moments are “practices after wins,” when the team usually gets to do half-court shots.
While the seniors said they will miss many different aspects of Fairfield, they all agreed that each other’s company would always be cherished.
“I know in the future, we won’t remember the practices, but we’ll remember the reminiscing,” said Murphy.
Sophomore forward Shireyll Moore said that the seniors’ impact extends beyond the court.
“They’re such a big influence on who we are as a team,” she said. “They’re just so much fun,” she added.
Sophomore Baendu Lowenthal, also a forward for the Stags, said that the seniors are role models.
“They’re older sisters. They show us what to do, on and off the court,” said Lowenthal.
Looking back on the last four years, Nolan said that watching the players mature has been very special.
“I’ve watched them grow up, and that’s something that’s just so rewarding,” she said.
The seniors played their final regular season home game at Harbor Yard, but will return there for the MAAC Championships in early March.
Leave a Reply