When freshman midfielder Lizzie Frederick scored her first goal last fall, one of her teammates celebrated a little more than the others.
Lizzie’s older sister and teammate, senior attacker Anna Frederick, went crazy.
“It was the first time she had ever been on the field and she went in on attack for a second and she cut and scored and I was so proud of her,” Anna said. “It was so awesome.”
That was the first time the sisters had played with each other since 2013, Anna’s senior year and Lizzie’s freshman year at Cape Henlopen High School where they won the Delaware Lacrosse State Championship.
“It was my first state championship and it was her last one,” Lizzie said. “It was a really close game and just really intense and fun. Just getting after it with each other was probably my favorite memory.”
The sisters started playing lacrosse when Anna was in fourth grade and Lizzie was in second. Because of their age difference, they didn’t get to play with each other until high school.
After Anna graduated, Lizzie had a year by herself until their younger sister Katie joined her on the high school team.
“I was honestly very jealous of her the last couple of years being with our other sister,” Anna said. “It was kind of sad to watch them get to do all these things together.”
Luckily for Anna, Lizzie decided to join her at Temple and carry on the legacy that started with their grandfather, Dave Frederick, who played football for the Owls in the mid-1960s.
“When I was first getting recruited I was like, ‘Well I don’t want to go to Temple. I don’t want to go to the same school as my sister,’” Lizzie said. “Now I’m super thankful that I came here and my sister is here.”
Lizzie has already seen the benefits of playing with her sister. She is currently working her way back from an ankle injury that has kept her from practicing this spring. She didn’t play in the Owls’ season-opening win against Rutgers University on Saturday.
Anna, who had to miss her sophomore season because of a torn ACL, has been a constant source of support.
“She is able to relate to how I feel not being able to play,” Lizzie said. “She just keeps things positive.”
Because of Lizzie’s injury, the sisters’ bond hasn’t been noticed on the field as much as it has been off it.
“I know that when one is absolutely having a hard day the other is always there for them,” coach Bonnie Rosen said. “They just care about each other and they come from an amazing family that knows how to take care of each other, and you see that a lot.”
Rosen is excited to see how that bond will transfer to the field.
She’s seen sisters play together before. Last year, twin sisters Megan and Nicole Tiernan combined for 50 goals, and Kari Longstaff started every game on defense while her twin sister Avery scored 10 goals.
“I think that’s one of the most exciting things we have is to be able to see that sister-sister connection on the field a lot,” Rosen said.
Redshirt-freshman defender Taylor Gooch has seen the Fredericks’ connection on the field. Gooch went to high school with the sisters. She was a sophomore when Anna was a senior and Lizzie was a freshman.
“Since they’re sisters, their connection is different than an average player,” Gooch said. “Whenever someone would do something well the other one would be much happier.”
In 2016, Anna played in 17 games and scored 11 goals on 19 shots.
Both sisters were four-time state champions in high school and were named to the all-state team their junior and senior years.
“High school was so much fun being together and winning a state championship together,” Lizzie said. “I wouldn’t have wanted to do it with anyone else, and just being able to continue that here, it’s nice.”
Tessa Sayers can be reached at teresa.sayers@temple.edu.
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