Since the fourth grade, Caitlyn Young and Brittany Angellella have walked together side by side.

But Sunday, they will be face to face when Boston College visits Coyne Field at 1 p.m. The two freshmen – Angellella, a Syracuse field hockey forward, and Young, a BC forward – will clash in SU’s second Big East game of the year.

The two met in the fourth grade and started playing softball together in Manahawkin, N.J. But their friendship grew even closer when they began showing an interest in field hockey.

‘We’ve been best friends since the seventh grade,’ Young said. ‘We were the only two moved to varsity as freshmen.’

For four years, they were the offensive sparks for coach Kathy Snyder and Shore Regional High School. They played travel hockey together and were Snyder’s co-captains together their senior year. That same season, Young earned second team all-state honors from the Associated Press, as well as player of the year accolades from The Star-Ledger, a New Jersey newspaper. Angellella wasn’t too bad either, garnering third team all-state honors from her midfield position. Together they combined for 54 goals and 36 assists in their senior season, as the Rams won the league crown.

But when Young looks back during a game now, she doesn’t see the same familiar face that she grew accustomed to for six years. Despite showing some interest in Syracuse, Young never visited the school and decided to become an Eagle after visiting the Chestnut Hill, Mass., campus.

‘BC’s football team played Notre Dame that weekend,’ Young said. ‘The atmosphere just made me want to come here.’

Angellella said the two were happy they would at least see each other because of the Big East schedule. They worked out all summer to prepare for preseason workouts that both players worried about. They survived the two weeks, and now they talk online and on the phone, too.

‘We cheer each other up if we haven’t been playing as much as we want,’ Young said.

Before the two left for school, Young made a scrapbook for her best friend. It contained quotes, motivational sayings and newspaper clippings from their high school days.

‘Sometimes when I get down on myself,’ Angellella said, ‘I look at it.’

Angellella hasn’t had much reason to get down on herself. The Orange (4-4, 1-0 Big East) has been too busy winning. In Wednesday’s overtime victory over Penn State, Angellella played some crucial minutes late in the second half for a tired Ashley Fry.

‘She did just fine,’ head coach Kathleen Parker said. ‘I asked her just to do simple things, and I thought she did just fine.’

Meanwhile, Young hasn’t had a big role in Boston College’s 6-2 start. The ninth-ranked Eagles are coming off an impressive 5-1 victory over Providence, a game in which Young didn’t get on the field.

The two have a few other players from their high school days earning playing time in the conference. Most recently, high school foe Carrie Granger of Rutgers played Angellella and the Orange in a 3-1 SU win. But despite the Big East rivalry, the freshmen haven’t done any trash talking.

‘No, not yet,’ Angellella said. ‘But I’m sure me and Caitlin will.’

Published on September 23, 2004 at 12:00 pm