Girls' Lacrosse Athlete of the Season: Sacred Heart Prep's Cam Gordon

No one can ever question the toughness of Sacred Heart Prep’s Cam Gordon. A former two-sport star with the Gators, she spent the last several seasons battling a slew of injuries, most notably stress fractures in her back and foot.

The other thing no one can question is what Gordon meant to the Gators this season. One of only three seniors, Gordon had to put her quest for individual glory on the backburner and focus on helping the team reach its potential.

Gordon’s dedication to her sport and her team has garnered her the honor of being the Daily Journal’s Girls’ Lacrosse Player of the Year.

“We had a really young team. … I thought she did a great job of leading. … I don’t think that is her personality. I think she had to push herself,” said SHP coach Wendy Kridel. “She didn’t have a group of upperclassmen to rely on, so it had to be about her. She had to take control.”

Gordon is used to being the center of attention on the field. An attacker, she was looking to build off an 80-plus goal season her junior year, but knew she would have to mentor her young teammates to bring them up to a level where the Gators could be competitive this season. Gordon knew she couldn’t do it all by herself and needed to get some help.

“There’s always more you can do,” Gordon said. “I tried my best to be a good leader on the team. I was a four-year varsity starter, so that’s what my coaches and teammates expected of me.”

The first thing Gordon had to do, however, was stay healthy enough to stay on the field. Having played soccer since she was 3 years old, Gordon picked up lacrosse as a 12-year-old and the constant physicality of both sports in seasons that run back to back took its toll on Gordon.

“I was on a nationally ranked (club) soccer team and I was trying to do both (sports) and that caused too much pressure on my spine,” Gordon said.

She eventually ended up with three stress fractures in her spine her sophomore year, causing her to miss time. She then incurred a stress fracture in her foot last season, forcing her, again, to miss time on the lacrosse field.

“I ended up taking a week off (last season because of the foot injury),” Gordon said. “My trainer probably hates me.”

With her star player one wrong step from the disabled list, Kridel did everything she could to minimize the risk of losing Gordon — not so much for her scoring prowess, but also what she meant to those teammates who looked to her to lead them.

“She played attack, but she could easily be a midfielder. She probably should be a midfielder but, for most of her career, she’s had chronic back issues,” Kridel said. “We never talked to her about her production. We talked more about [playing time]. She had to be out on that field.”

Gordon was on the field enough to account for about 50 percent of her team’s goals this season, even though the actual number of goals scored was well below the pace she set as a junior.

Gordon, however, made peace with that early on.

“I just had to let go of my personal goals so I could be a better leader on the team,” Gordon said. “It was definitely difficult to not reach my personal goals, but I think it was important for me to give the support to the others. For the future of this team, it was more important for me to mold those players.”

But even a rebuilding SHP team was a dangerous squad. The Gators went 4-6 to finish third in the West Bay Athletic League Foothill Division standings, advancing to the semifinals of the WBAL tournament before falling to Mitty. And while all involved wished they could have won a few more games, both Gordon and Kridel were pleased with the development of the team as a whole.

“(A lot of the players on) this team had never played before. … The players took on roles that made it more competitive,” Gordon said. “I just learned not to get frustrated. I tried to put myself in their situation and remembering how the older players helped me. [Kridel] just told me how much these players looked up to me. It’s a life lesson.”

When it became apparent lacrosse would be Gordon’s ticket to college, she dropped soccer after her sophomore. The move paid off as she will continue playing at Cal next season. If she continues to play and mentor as she did in high school, the Golden Bears will have the perfect teammate.

“She [was] the most versatile, most athletic player (in the league),” Kridel said. “I think there was a lot of pressure on her, but I don’t think she minded it. … She did a good job of keeping frustration from creeping. She was able to be a bigger person and do whatever the team needed.”