UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State Women's Lacrosse team has named its captains for the 2022 season. Senior Mary Muldoon and junior Rachel Spilker have been selected as captains by their teammates.
Both are Maryland natives with Muldoon hailing from Silver Spring, Md. and Spilker from Severna Park, Md. The pair have both had siblings play lacrosse at Penn State as Mary's sister, Delaney, was a member of the team from 2016-19, and Rachel's sister, Erika, played from 2013-17 and was a captain for three seasons.
Spilker, who is entering her third season as a Nittany Lion, says that one of the most important roles of a team captain is to amplify and open space for the voices of the rest of the team.
"To foster a team dynamic where every individual feels a sense of leadership and responsibility creates a strong foundation to handle both adversity and success as the season comes along," Spilker said. "I am lucky to be a part of a group that embodies so many different forms of leadership, and I think utilizing that will be a key to our success this year."
Muldoon responded similarly, stating that one of the best qualities a team captain can possess is the ability to make space for other people to be leaders.
"Because our team has many young players, I think it's really important for formal leaders like captains to empower our teammates to feel like they have their own leadership role and role on the team," Muldoon said. "We are going to win this season when we all embrace our roles and work with each other rather than individually."
Muldoon added that another valuable quality in a team captain is her ability to make herself available to her teammates. It is an attribute which she says the captains with whom she played in the past did a great job in exemplifying.
Muldoon is entering her fourth year as a Nittany Lion. Last season as a junior she played in 13 games, making six starts while tallying 17 goals and six ground balls. She also posted five multi-goal games. In 2021, she was also one of seven players in the conference to receive the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
Last season as a sophomore, Spilker appeared in eight games, making seven starts while recording 13 ground balls, two draw controls and 13 caused turnovers.
Both Muldoon and Spilker look forward to the upcoming season and anticipate the opportunity for their team to put its hard work on display.
"We have a group that wants to compete and find success together, which I think is a really powerful combination that I am excited to be a part of," said Spilker.
Muldoon added, "I am most looking forward to putting everything together that we have been preparing for since August. I think that our group this year has an edge that we can use to our advantage this season.
"I love how young our team is and admire many different people who have stepped up and taken on their own leadership roles. I am extremely excited to start the season with an incredible group of players and coaches especially as we start on the road."
The Nittany Lions will play their first four games on the road with their season opener happening on Feb. 16 at Drexel. The blue and white return March 9 to host James Madison at Panzer Stadium for the first of their seven home games.
Follow along with the team on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateWomensLacrosse) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatewlax).
