North Jersey Female Athlete of the Week has All-American genes and a unique journey
Angela Beardsley is one of a kind.
The Northern Highlands senior is likely the only lacrosse star in this neck of the woods with a 315 phone number and a recruiting profile photo of her riding a horse. She has gone to high school in three different states and has two All-Americans for parents.
On the field, the Stony Brook commit has a habit of standing out as well. She can trick goalies with a behind-the-back shot or beat them clean by rocketing a shot from a stationary position.
When she scored five times in the Bergen County final last year, it all came from heart and adrenaline. Her ankle had to be iced and taped up after a Grade 2+ sprain near the end of warmups.
"She does things that 99 percent of athletes in high school lacrosse cannot do," Northern Highlands coach Mike Menzella said. "Her lacrosse IQ is unparalleled. She sees everything move so slow around her."
Movement has been a common theme for Beardsley, who's spent most of her life in North Syracuse. Her father, Ric, was a college captain and two-time national champion at Syracuse and has a photo floating around somewhere of a young Angela with a stick in her hand and a pacifier in her mouth.
The big turning point for Beardsley came her sophomore year. She decided to transfer to IMG Academy, but the move and the feeling of leaving friends behind was something she still regrets. A year later, the self-described introvert came to Allendale and found a welcoming set of teammates.
"They took me in right away when I came here to Northern Highlands," Beardsley said. "They literally included me as their own. I thought they would just think, oh my gosh, this girl just came from IMG. They didn't even look at that."
For the Highlanders, it was certainly a nice boost to add a top scorer who's also impressed with her effort and willingness to lay out for a ball. Beardsley has chipped in 25 goals this year and stepped up last Thursday against IHA with a hat trick.
The win pushed Northern Highlands up to the No. 2 seed in the county tournament and confirmed its status as the main threat to the Ridgewood dynasty.
"The best thing about her is even though she is a fantastic player, she makes everyone around her better," Menzella said. "She's not just looking to go."
Up until lacrosse season, Beardsley would go up to Syracuse almost every weekend to see her mom and younger sister and take care of a thoroughbred racehorse named Bear. Beardsley started riding when she was 5 and competed in the Great New York State Fair last summer. (Hence, the profile photo.)
Beardsley admits there is pressure that comes with her family name, though she is quick to credit her parents for getting her to this point. Since her dad was a former coach in the Syracuse area, Beardsley got the chance to practice and hang around with varsity athletes when she was in third or fourth grade. But don't downplay the influence from her mom, Tori DeSilvia Beardsley, who set a national age-group record in swimming before racing onto the college level at Tennessee.
"She's going to hate me if you put that in the article," Beardsley said. "She is definitely the athlete of the household."
In some ways, things will come full circle next year when Beardsley goes across the state line to Stony Brook after years of club ball on Long Island.
For now, the No. 1 priority is bringing Northern Highlands its first county gold.
"I think we're feeling really good," Beardsley said. "If we trust each other and continue how we're going and continue the energy, I think we'll go pretty go far."
Angela Beardsley
Sport: Lacrosse
School: Northern Highlands
Class: Senior. Age: 18
Accomplishment: Beardsley led Northern Highlands past two high-powered rivals last week, finishing with a hat trick against No. 3 Immaculate Heart and two goals and two draw controls against No. 8 Ramapo.
Also nominated: Nina Danyluk of Glen Rock, Liliana Houser of Wayne Valley, LeeAnn Downey of Ramapo, and Morgan Garth of Bergen Charter for softball; Zoe Gatanas of Demarest for lacrosse; Julia Tozduman of Lyndhurst for track and field; and Marisa Flores of Immaculate Heart for golf.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Bergen Record Female Athlete of the Week: Angela Beardsley, Northern Highlands
