If Clinton Youth Lacrosse is looking for a face for its program, it should take a long look at Maribeth Simmons. During her lacrosse career, Maribeth has carried the CYL flag with pride, becoming a shining example of what a student-athlete should be. Maribeth was a star on the field, a leader, an academic success, and most importantly, an ambassador for her town and her sport.

Maribeth, a recent graduate of SUNY Potsdam, put together a collegiate athletic career that should be modeled by all the local youngsters ready to head down the path she helped blaze nearly 10 years ago. One of the original members of the first Morgan girls' lacrosse teams, Maribeth went on to a successful soccer and lacrosse career for the Potsdam Bears, raising the bar future Huskies will reach for.

"It is awesome to think about that when I started out, especially at Morgan when I was a freshman, I was one of a handful of girls who had played lacrosse before," Maribeth says. "We had no goalie, no real team by any means; it was a lot of practices working on passing, catching, defensive stance, shooting, all the things at Morgan they don't need to be practicing as much anymore. Starting at a young age in Clinton and continuing through what is becoming a great high school program is definitely something I'm honored to have been a part of."

During her career for the Bears, Maribeth finished in the top four of scoring in each of her last three years, totaling 49 points as a junior (second on the team) and a team-high 30 goals this spring as a senior. In 63 career games, she scored 86 goals with 24 assists, placing her fourth on the SUNY Potsdam all-time scoring list.

"Off the field, she was a dual athlete here," says Potsdam women's lacrosse coach Lauren Bruce. "She was a very strong vocal leader; even though she didn't have the captain title, she definitely acted like one. I think she excelled in school because she had a good head on her shoulders, she knew what her goals were, and approached her four years of college with goals in mind."

Maribeth was a mainstay on defense, starting 67 of the 70 games she played in during her career and earning the Bears' MVP honors as a senior.

"Athletically, I was really proud to be on the field and being the leading [lacrosse] scorer this year," says Maribeth. "There is not really a game that sticks out in my mind; they all sort of mold into one after so long. Just being out there is the biggest accomplishment."

Off the field, Maribeth is just as accomplished, earning SUNYAC All-Academic and Commissioner's List recognition.

"Just looking back on it, I pride myself on doing what I did academically," she says. "In order to receive [the Commissioner's List], you have to be on the academic list three semesters in a row. I'm so proud of those semesters when I was able to maintain academics and athletics."

But the biggest recognition Maribeth received was the Maxcy Molnar Award, given to just one SUNY male and female graduating athlete a year. The Maxcy Molnar Award is presented to a student athlete who "best combines the qualities of sportsmanship, leadership, scholarship, and athletic achievement," according to Potsdambears.com.

"This award is so huge; it is only given to one female out of the entire graduating class," she says. "It is something I wasn't expecting and I'm so proud of."

Yet espite all of her success, Maribeth says initially coming to SUNY Potsdam was no easy task. Coming from Morgan-where the lacrosse team was still a club sport when she was a freshman-to a program like the one the Bears boasted meant a lot of change. In her first two seasons, Coach Bruce slotted Maribeth as a midfielder before moving her solely to attack by her junior year.

"Going into an established program was the hardest thing [about the college transition]," Maribeth says. "My mom coached me in the Morgan program all the way through high school and I was always her secondhand woman helping with the ins and outs of the game. Going into an established program helped me relax while playing-not worrying about anything was a big transition for me. Going from Morgan, where I did everything the team ever needed, to Potsdam, was hard to handle at first. I guess the whole transition was kind of crazy."

However, the fact that Maribeth made that transition so smoothly and with such success is exactly why future Huskies need look no further than Maribeth when searching for a role model.

"I want to start giving back to the community and to lacrosse as soon as possible," says Maribeth. "Lacrosse has always been a passion of mine. Ever since I stepped on the field in 4th grade, I knew I would do it my whole life. I'm looking forward to helping out coaching at the high school level or down in the 2nd, 3rd, or even the 8th grade. Clinton is a good program now and I want to go back to where I started."