A state championship in their final high school lacrosse game at Shoreham-Wading River seemed to be the perfect ending for seniors Stephanie Anderson and Brittany DeLea. But before moving on to college -- Anderson at Rutgers, DeLea at Yale -- the two had one special moment left.
Representing the North team last weekend in the Under Armour All-America game, the duo led the team to a 12-9 victory at Towson University against the South team.
Anderson -- the Suffolk County Player of the Year as named by Newsday -- was the tournament Most Valuable Player after scoring three goals with an assist in the championship game.
"It was the icing on the cake," Anderson said. "The whole weekend in general, just being down there with the top players in the nation, it was unbelievable."
Anderson and DeLea shared the experience with coach Bob Vlahakis, who was selected to lead the North team. It was a star-studded weekend that featured an eloquent banquet dinner Friday night before the championship game Saturday.
"It was a wonderful weekend," Vlahakis said. "Under Armour really treated everybody great."
The game was broadcast live on ESPN-U and Anderson was interviewed after the game, which can be seen at insiderlacrosse.com. It capped the end to one of the best careers in Shoreham history that saw her tally 180 goals with 68 assists on a team that won three state championships, four Long Island and five county titles.
Anderson and DeLea earned a spot on the team with the elite players of the nation based on nominations, which were sorted through by various college coaches. Only one Shoreham player had been selected for the game before when Emily Schaknowski played in 2006. Last year Colleen McCaffrey of Mount Sinai and Brianne LoManto of Rocky Point represented the North team.
With Vlahakis at the helm the North team played a similar style that Shoreham has used in recent years. They used the backer defense and ran multiple midfield lines in five to six minute stretches.
DeLea played mostly on defense and was a stabilizer in the back. Her experience with the defense helped the rest of the team adjust. The team had only two practices before the game. Vlahakis said it took about 20 minutes to get the defense set.
"We talked to the kids about trying it and pressuring the other team with something they wouldn't expect," Vlahakis said.
The team had mostly midfielders so many of the players were playing out of position.
"The kids were great about it," Vlahakis said.
The North team trailed 5-3 at halftime before pulling away in the second half. Anderson -- who took the first draw of the game -- assisted on the first goal of the second half when she found Michelle Tumolo (Mullica Hill, N.Y.) to make it a 5-4 game.
Anderson scored off an assist from Farmingdale's Janine Hillier with 14:03 left to give the North an 8-6 lead. She made it 11-7 with 6:14 left on a free position goal which equaled the team's biggest lead.
"The intensity level was through the roof," Anderson said.
"We went end to end very fast," Vlahakis added. "We played at a fast speed and it got faster."
In the second half the South team tried spreading the ball out offensively to counter the backer defense.
"We went out farther and chased them and got them out of synch a little bit," Vlahakis said.
Anderson said she knew most of the girls on the team through the Empire Games and travel teams. There were seven Long Island girls on the team in addition to Anderson and DeLea.
Playing with so many talented athletes affords Anderson the chance to improve her game, she said. "I learn new skills, new dodges and new tricks," she said.
Vlahakis said he was first contacted about the opportunity back in November or December. At the time he didn't know much about the game or what it was about. He made a call to Diane Chapman, the coach at Garden City, and also to the coach at West Genesee who had been involved in the All-America game before. Vlahakis didn't have a hand in choosing the team and didn't know at first whether any players on his team would be selected.
"It shows a little about the recognition of our program," he said.
From when they first arrived Thursday night the players and coaches had a jam-packed schedule. It started with a dinner Thursday with the players and coaches. Friday started with a practice in the morning, lunch in the afternoon before another practice after it. The banquet Friday night featured more than 1,000 people, Vlahakis said, where the players were all introduced.
The weekend, though, had one drawback. The game meant Anderson and DeLea had to miss their graduation at Shoreham-Wading River Saturday morning.
But there was still another surprise. At halftime all the players who were missing graduation were given diplomas in a makeshift ceremony.
Soon after Anderson would be hoisting an MVP trophy, the perfect ending to a nearly perfect career.
joew@northshoresun.com