Posts by Hilary Dougherty

Year             Grade              Head Coach          Assistant Coach 

2028   –   11th grade   –   John Callanan   –   Nevin Sullivan

JC~ John Callanan provides over 30 years of experience coaching girls  lacrosse in the Tri-State area. As the Suffern High School Girls Lacrosse Coach since 1998, Coach Callanan’s teams have featured over 65 All-Americans, and have earned a number of US Lacrosse “Top-25 National Rankings.” In addition, Coach Callanan currently ranks second in all-time wins in New York State girls lacrosse. Coach Callanan’s club coaching experience began in 2002 when he created the Hudson Valley Hurricane Girls Lacrosse Club. In addition to his coaching position at Suffern, Coach Callanan has taken on the Hudson Valley Regional Coach/Director of the US Lacrosse National Tournament (1999-2019), Hudson Valley Regional Coach/Director of the Empire State Games (2001-2008), and Founder/Director of the Suffern Girls Youth Lacrosse Club (1999-Present). Along with coaching, Mr. Callanan has been teaching history at Suffern High School since 1996, and has served as an adjunct instructor for Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Public Policy since 2011. Mr. Callanan graduated from Le Moyne College, and he earned his Masters Degree in Education from The City College of New York. While at Le Moyne, Coach Callanan played four years as a Defensive Midfielder for the Dolphins (’91-’94). Coach Callanan and his wife, Mary Lynn Collins-Callanan, reside in Tarrytown, N.Y. with their four children Daniel, Mary Kate, Johnny, and Rosie.  Coach Callanan is the Head Coach of the Metro Magic 2028 team.

NS- Graduating from Suffern High School with All-American honors in 2026, Nevin Sullivan will be heading to Rutgers  this fall as a defensive standout and draw specialist. Nevin’s years at Suffern were nothing but outstanding as she helped guide the Mounties to four straight NY State appearances. Additionally, during her tenure at Suffern, Nevin earned All-League, All-Section and All-American honors. Nevin has been surrounded by the game since birth and has been coaching SGYL since 9th grade, which has been an incredible opportunity for her to make connections with the community and continue to grow the game. Nevin not only brings her experience to the turf, her ability to break down skills and technique make her a valuable asset to the staff. 

2029   –    10th grade   –   Kelsey Rehain   –   Michaela Fay

KR~ Coach Rehain was a midfielder and attacker for the Suffern High School varsity lacrosse team from 2006–2010. A two-time team captain, she earned All-County and All-Section honors during her junior and senior seasons. Following high school, Coach Rehain attended Manhattan College, where she was a four-year starter at both attack and midfield while earning her degree in Physical Education. She began her coaching career as the assistant varsity coach at Longmeadow High School in Massachusetts, helping lead the team to the 2015 Massachusetts State Championship. She then spent five years coaching at both the JV and Varsity levels in New York, serving on the staffs at Suffern High School and Pearl River High School. Coach Rehain is currently the head varsity coach at Ramsey High School, where she was named the 2026 Bergen County Coach of the Year. In addition to her high school coaching career, she has been a coach with Metro Lacrosse Club for the past eight years, developing players of all ages and skill levels while helping them grow both on and off the field.

MF- In her time as a five year Varsity starter, Michaela Fay left her mark as a 2x All-American and four year All-Section player for the Mounties. Michaela has been known for her tenacity, quickness, and distinct athleticism on both sides of the field. Michaela’s ability to use her footwork and dodge anywhere on the field combined with her ability to perform at the elite level within the 8 meter, makes her one of the top lacrosse players ever to come out of Suffern High School. Michaela will be heading to University of Maryland this fall to continue her lacrosse career at the highest level. 

2030   –    9th grade   –   Amanda Squillini   –   Emma O’Callaghan

AS~Coach Amanda graduated from North Rockland High School in 2018 where she was a two year captain and received all-league and all-section honors. She helped the team to win three sectional titles and reach the state final-four three times. After high school, coach Amanda played as a defender on the women’s lacrosse team at SUNY Cortland. She was a two year captain and as a freshman she was a finalist for the C-Club Freshman Athlete of the Year Award. She earned All-SUNYAC honors, All-Empire Region honors, SUNYAC All-Tournament Team, USA Lacrosse All-America Third Team, and SUNY and SUNYAC Spring Scholar Athlete of the Year. She was also awarded the C-Club Unsung Hero Award in 2022. Coach Amanda earned a Bachelors degree in Physical Education with a minor is Sport Management as well as a Masters degree in Teaching Students With Disabilities. Coach Amanda is the head coach of the Metro 2032 team.

EO~Graduated from Albertus Magnus High school in 2023 as a three time All- Section, All- County, All- League attacker at Albertus Magnus High school. Emma played for the Hudson Valley team in the US Lacrosse National Tournament, along with being named Rockland County Spring athlete of the year in 2023 and an Elite 11 “Best of the Rest” pick. A current rising senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County where she is a member of the National College Athlete Honor society.

2031   –   8th grade   –   Bonnie Conklin / Micaela DeSimone / Kiera Larney

BC- Coach Conklin graduated Suffern High School as an All-American only to continue on as a four-year starter at George Mason University. Graduating in 1999 with All-American and 1st team All-CAA honors, coach Conklin moved into coaching two years at James Madison University, reaching the final four in the 2001 NCAA tournament losing to Princeton in the semifinals. She coached five collegial Americans on that team. For 2001 James Madison squad were CAA champions and lost by one goal to UMD in the quarterfinals at the NCAA tournament. Coach competed for the Maryland Thunder, the first professional women’s lacrosse exhibition game in 2001 at the Capitol Center in Washington DC. In 2018 Coach Conklin became the head women’s lacrosse coach at St. Thomas Aquinas College for a two year stint before Covid wrapped up her college coaching career. She currently works at WMC as a registered nurse on the labor and delivery unit. Additionally she is the director of the Hudson Valley region for the Excelsior Games. Coach Conklin has been a prominent part of the metro staff since 1997 and is currently one of the owners of Metro lacrosse. She has guided countless players into the college lacrosse path from college club to Divison I.

MD- Coach DeSimone was a defender for the Suffern Varsity lacrosse team from 2006-2010. She served as captain her final two seasons as she earned All-County, All-Section and All-American accolades. She also played on the NYS team in the Women’s Division National Tournament and the Hudson Valley team in the Empire State Games in her sophomore and junior year, and most recently was named a member of the Section 1 “All-Decade team” in 2020. After high school Coach DeSimone went on to be a four year starter at defense, and a 2x Captain at Union College where she studied English. After Union, Coach DeSimone attended the University of Pennsylvania in pursuit of a Masters Degree in the Science of Education. While there, she served as the girls lacrosse Varsity coach at The Taft School, as well as the head coach of girls JV basketball, and girls modified volleyball. Following her completion of her Master’s, Coach DeSimone moved on to be the JV girl’s lacrosse coach for the 2016-2017 season leading them to a 12-2 final record. As Coach DeSimone continued her teaching journey into NYC, she moved to Queen’s where she continued coaching girls volleyball, girls basketball, and the occasional boys baseball game. At present Coach DeSimone works in Community Engagement for Boston University.

KL: Coach Keira was a prominent member of the Warwick Varsity Girls Lacrosse team from 2019-2023 where she earned her varsity letters for soccer, basketball and lacrosse. Keira was was two-time Captain for Warwick and her senior year was awarded All-American as well as her second Player of the Year award. Keira then moved onto the University of Vermont where she played midfield and was awarded AEC Honor roll in both 2024 and 2025.           

2032   –   7th grade   –    Meg Hogan / Greg Borchers / Olivia Castaldo 

MH~ Meghan recently wrapped up her collegiate lacrosse career at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), where she majored in Elementary Education and Psychology. During her time with the Lions, she earned First Team All-NJAC and Second Team IWLCA All-Boardwalk Region honors. Prior to TCNJ, Meghan graduated from Ramapo High School (NJ), where she earned two First Team All-Conference selections, First Team All-Group honors, First Team All-State recognition, and was nominated for North Jersey Player of the Year. As a coach she is passionate about helping young athletes build confidence, develop strong fundamentals, and grow their love for the game.

GB~ After nearly a 20-year hiatus, North Rockland revived the Girls Lacrosse program by fielding a JV team in 1999.  It took a few years before the Raiders established themselves on the varsity level.  Coach Greg Borchers took over as head coach in 2004. It took only two seasons before the Raiders captured their first League title under Borchers. Over 20 years and 300 wins later, Borchers has built a powerhouse program that routinely rivals some of the best in Section I. To date, Borchers has guided North Rockland to nine league championships and five Section I titles.  He has also won four Regional tournaments, and subsequently made four trips to the New York State Championship weekend.  Although he has won numerous “Coach-of-the-Year” awards, he is quick to praise his players for carrying the bulk of the work. 100+ players have gone on to play college lacrosse at the D1, D2 & D3 level.  In total, Borchers has coached over 150 All League and Section players, 18 U.S. Lacrosse All-Americans and the Rockland County and Section “Players-of-the-Year” 10 times.  

For nearly 25 years, Borchers has served as an assistant coach for the NR Boys Soccer program. Coach Borchers has coached the Hudson Valley Empire State Team, the Hudson Valley National Tournament Team, the Hudson Valley Excelsior Games, the Hudson Valley Hurricanes and now is co owner of Metro Lacrosse Club. 

OC~ Olivia is a North Rockland alum, whose accolades include two-time USA Lacrosse All-American and three-time All-Section selection, finishing with over 300 career points in High-school. Olivia plays Division I lacrosse at Monmouth University, and while fishing her rookie season, recorded 22 points while starting 10 games as a two-way midfielder. Additionally, Olivia also earned recognition on the 2025 CAA Fall Academic Honor Roll.

2033   –   6th grade   –    Lexi Mottola / Mike Sullivan / Joe Gizzi

LM~A former Metro player, Coach Lexie Mottola brings nearly a decade of coaching at the youth and high school levels to Metro. She graduated from Fair Lawn High School in 2018. She was a four-year varsity starter as a goalie and earned multiple First Team All-League and All-County honors, MVP awards, as well as being named “The Best Girls Lacrosse Goalie in the American Conference”. She became the first lacrosse goalie in Fair Lawn High School history to surpass the 500 career save mark and finished her 4 years with a total 529 saves. Coach Lexie continued her lacrosse career and education at Quinnipiac University, where she played club lacrosse and earned her Masters of Occupational Therapy degree. While in college, Coach Lexie became the youth goalie coach at Metro. After graduating college in 2024, Coach Lexie began coaching girls lacrosse at Ramsey High School alongside a fellow Metro coach, Kelsey Rehain. She is a varsity assistant and the JV coach. This past 2026 season, she coached her JV team to an undefeated 13-0 record. When not working with the high school players, Coach Lexie volunteers with the Ramsey Junior Lacrosse program to encourage and develop the skills of the youngest Rams. Coach Lexie works as an Occupational Therapist in Oakland Public Schools where she treats Pre-K to 8th grade students. In both areas of work, Coach Lexie believes in encouraging kids to reach their fullest potential through hard work, persistence, and challenging themselves while creating a positive, supportive, and fun environment. Coach Lexie has supported our youngest girls at the 3rd and 4th grade level, as a co-head coach, for the past 2 years.  The Fall 2026 season will be the start of Coach Lexie’s 8th year coaching at Metro.

MS~ Coach Mike Sullivan has spent more than 25 years coaching high school lacrosse and 30 years as a science educator in Rockland County, working with both boys and girls programs at Pearl River and Suffern High Schools. Throughout his career, he has been committed to helping student-athletes develop their skills, build confidence, and compete with integrity. Mike currently serves as the Varsity Boys Lacrosse Head Coach at Pearl River High School after previously spending two decades coaching in the Suffern High School girls lacrosse program at the modified, junior varsity, and varsity levels. He has been fortunate enough to help teams compete for Section 1 and New York State championships while working alongside outstanding coaches, dedicated families, and talented student-athletes. Many of the players he has been privileged to coach have gone on to earn All-League, All-Section, All-State, and All-American honors. Coach Sullivan is committed to creating a positive, energetic environment where players are challenged, encouraged, and supported. He believes the best coaching helps athletes not only become better lacrosse players, but also develop confidence, resilience, leadership, and a lifelong love for the game.

JG~Coach Gizzi has more than a decade of girls lacrosse coaching experience, including the past eight years with Metro. Throughout his career, he has coached athletes at both the youth and high school levels, providing him with a broad perspective on player development and the game. He prides himself on building strong relationships with his players while fostering a team-first culture centered on accountability, trust, and relentless effort. In addition to coaching lacrosse, Coach Gizzi is a Physical Education teacher in the North Rockland CSD, where he has taught students at every grade level. He also serves as a Varsity Assistant Football Coach, earning recognition as the New York State Assistant Coach of the Year and a recipient of the High School Broyles Award.

2034   –   5th grade   –   Molly McCarren / Justin Henry / Maggie Mauer

MM~Coach Molly McCarren is a graduate of the University of Scranton, where she was a four-year midfielder and senior captain for the Royals. During her collegiate career, she helped lead Scranton to multiple Landmark Conference Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances while earning Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll and IWLCA Academic Honor Roll recognition. She finished her career as a consistent two-way midfielder known for her work ethic and leadership. Off the field, Molly is an elementary school teacher and currently serves as an assistant coach for Warwick Valley Varsity Girls Lacrosse. In her first season with the program, she helped guide the Wildcats to a 17-2 record, a Section title, and a Regional Final appearance. Molly is passionate about developing fundamentally sound, confident athletes and loves helping players grow both on and off the field.

JH: Justin Henry is currently an assistant coach for the Suffern High School Girls Lacrosse team and a coach with Suffern Girls Youth Lacrosse. He helped coach Suffern to a Section Championship while developing players at both the youth and high school levels.  Coach Henry is also the former High School and Recruiting Director for Riot North Lacrosse Club, where he helped identify, recruit, and develop high-level student-athletes while guiding families through the college recruiting process.  Previously, Coach Henry coached boys lacrosse at North Rockland High School, Nyack High School, and Fordham Prep. During his coaching career, he has been part of teams that won two Rockland County Championships at North Rockland and two NYC CHSAA Championships at Fordham Prep.  A two-time USA Lacrosse Assistant Coach of the Year, Coach Henry has coached and developed numerous All-Americans, All-State, and All-League players throughout his career.

MM: Maggie competed at North Rockland high school in both varsity field hockey and varsity lacrosse and was awarded All-League and the Golden Dozen award her senior year. Maggie then moved on to play at SUNY Plattsburgh where she is an attack/midfielder and has started all games for the Cardinals. Additionally, her freshman year Maggie earned SUNYAC Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll and ended her sophomore season ranked third on her team for both goals and ground balls. 

2035/36   –   3rd/4th grade   –   Jenna Fox / Halianne Fitzgerald 

JF~Coach Fox graduated from North Rockland High school in 2016. In high school she received All Section, All County, and All League honors and played on the National Tournament team. Coach Fox graduated from Dominican College in 2020 where she played midfield for 4 years and garnered several honors including CACC Rookie of the year, First Team All CACC all four years and First Team All EACC.  As a junior, she broke the records for all time leading draw controls, assists and points at Dominican. Coach Fox is currently a Physical Education Teacher at North Rockland High School. She is also the Assistant Varsity Coach for both lacrosse and field hockey at North Rockland and has coached metro for 8 years! 

HF~Coach Fitz graduated from Valley Central HS in 2013 where she was a four year Varsity basketball player and two year Varsity lacrosse player. At VC, she was a Section IX Girls Basketball champion and received All-Section in basketball and lacrosse. She attended Dominican College and played for four years at midfield. She received First team All-Conference and was Top 10 in Career Points, Assists, and Ground Balls for Dominican College. At Dominican, she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Athletic Training and earned a Master’s Degree in Physical Education from Manhattanville College. Currently, she coaches the Valley Central JV Girls’s basketball and lacrosse teams and is a Physical Education Teacher at Valley Central HS. She has coached metro for three years.

GK Specialist:                            

Lexi Mottola (see above)  

Madison Figueroa

MF~5 year varsity lacrosse goalie and field hockey player at North Rockland High school, graduated 2022. Made over 300 saves, 2x team MVP, 3x all league goalie, 2x all section goalie, named on the Lohud elite 11 lacrosse list entering senior year. Additionally, Madison 3x all section, 1x first team all state, and an all-league field hockey goalie for the Raiders and in 2021 was named Rockland County field hockey player of the year. Madison attended Muhlenberg College as a lacrosse goalie, and despite being injured 2 years still had a huge presence on her team and continued to hone her skills as a goalie. Madison graduated win 2026 with a degree in Neuroscience and currently attends Montclair State University to get her clinical doctorate in audiology. Madison also coached at the North Rockland Youth Hockey learn to play ice hockey program for 4 years, as well as volunteered with the New York Rangers Learn to Skate program for 5 years.