Last weekend’s women’s lacrosse game between Maryland and host Virginia Tech was the first time that Kendall McBrearty had seen her twin sister, Kady, since the tragedy the week before in Blacksburg, but it wasn’t the first time she had seen the Hokies play.
Kady McBrearty, a junior attacker and Virginia Tech’s leading scorer, racked up a career-high four goals in a game defined by much more than the Terrapins’ 21-17 winning scoreline.
“They played their best and [Kady] played her best in that game,” said Kendall McBrearty. “I think it’s just because they all knew that they had nothing to lose and they had everything to play for.”
“It’s the first time you’ve ever seen my sister in Virginia Tech clothes,” said Kady McBrearty. “Kendall wore my number so that was really nice. It really meant a lot to me because she goes to UVA, our biggest rival.”
With Kendall in goal for the sixth-ranked Cavaliers (13-3) and Kady leading the rebuilding Hokies (5-11), the twins, both juniors, represent two teams with very different goals entering this weekend’s Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Kendall McBrearty, a St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes alum who spent the last two years as a backup, anchors a defense allowing under eight goals a game this season.
“We know that any of the top four teams are capable of winning the ACC and/or the NCAAs. It’s just a matter of who is going to step up and put it all on the line,” said Kendall.
Though her school is still recovering and her team is the underdog, Kady McBrearty (28 goals, 20 assists) thinks the Hokies can once again summon the kind of performance they had against Maryland.
“It helps that we’ve already played,” said Kady. “It was kind of hard to play — last Sunday was really emotional — and I thinkbecause we’ve already had that day out of us, it’s going to be that much easier.”
They may not see each other before they play, but both Kady and Kendall expect the same text message: Kick [butt] and take names.
“I think that helps because we’ve done it before every game this season,” said Kady. “It helps not to break the tradition.”
ACC women’s lacrosse quarterfinals
Today at Chapel Hill, N.C.
» No. 6 Virginia Tech (5-11, 0-5 ACC) vs. No. 3 North Carolina (13-3, 3-2), 1
» No. 4 Virginia (13-3, 3-2) vs. No. 5 Boston College (5-9, 1-4), 3:30
