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05/24/2019 12:00 AMCharlie Molloy decided that he wanted to solely focus on lacrosse around the halfway mark of his athletic career at Guilford High School. That decision, coupled with plenty of diligence and dedication, took Charlie on a journey that saw him become an outstanding student-athlete at Keene State College.
Charlie played several sports while growing up, including football, ice hockey, and lacrosse. When he was in high school, Charlie honed in on lacrosse and became an All-SCC First Team defender for the Indians, before graduating in 2015.
Charlie went on to play lacrosse at Keene State, a Division III school in New Hampshire, where he helped the Owls win four-straight Little East Conference championships. Charlie was named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year and his team’s Most Valuable Player in each of the past two seasons, while also serving as a senior captain this year.
Charlie put together an impressive run in the classroom at Keene State, too. He recently graduated magna cum laude with a double major in management and safety/occupational health applied sciences.
“I had a great experience at Keene, and it took a lot of hard work,” says Charlie, who was vice president of the school’s Student Athletic Advisory Committee. “The biggest part of it all was the team success and having a great time with my teammates, along with how we grew as a team.”
After arriving on campus, Charlie quickly found out that lacrosse moves much faster on the collegiate terrain. Charlie learned as much as he could while seeing limited time as a freshman, then really came into his own during a breakout sophomore season.
“The biggest difference between the high school and college games was the speed. You go from competitive lacrosse in Connecticut for high school, and then you have every player playing at that fast speed with higher expectations,” Charlie says. “My freshman year I didn’t play as much, but once I came back, my coaches had more confidence in me, which helped me get acclimated to the speed, and I proved myself as a sophomore.”
Charlie’s favorite aspect of playing defense is the physical nature of the position. However, he also made sure to relay crucial messages to his teammates during the heat of battle.
“Communication with the team on the field can be tough, because you need guys clicking on all cylinders,” Charlie says. “But it’s nice when it all comes together.”
Charlie put in plenty of long hours both on the field and with the books at Keene State. It took a lot of sacrifice, but Charlie made the grade in both arenas with the backing of a supportive faculty.
“The school helped make it easy to balance everything with the study hall hours and the library,” says Charlie. “I had a great group of professors who were understanding of my obligations and really supported me. It also took a lot of hard work on my part.”
Guilford boys’ lacrosse Head Coach Brian White isn’t at all surprised by what Charlie accomplished in college. White saw Charlie go all-out every day as a member of the Indians and appreciates that he still gives back to the program.
“Charlie has always been a hard-working and diligent player. He was always looking to improve and constantly serving as a model for other players when he was here. He was a primary reason why our teams were so successful defensively during the years he was at Guilford High School,” says White. “Charlie comes back every year and helps our players improve. He does it out of his love for the sport and the program that he was part of.”
Charlie doesn’t forget where he came from. Charlie says the time he spent playing lacrosse at Guilford gave him a foundation for success that’s enabled him to achieve his goals at the next level.
“I learned so much from Brian White and [assistant coach] Scott Davidson,” Charlie says. “As far as academics, they gave me the right work, and it was up to me to make sure I got it done. It definitely helped prepare me for college.”