For the Belmont High School girls lacrosse team to continue its momentum toward the upper echelon of MIAA Division 1, the Marauders needed a new goalkeeper to step up and replace their former stalwart, lost to graduation.
Enter junior Brooke Whalen, whose skills and goalkeeper aptitude exceed the standards of the usual first-year starter. She honed those skills on the club circuit, working hard and training consistently. She also tapped an invaluable resource: Older sister Kendall Whalen, who just wrapped up her career in net for Division I UMass Lowell.
“Goalie is very much a mental and individual position, and not everyone understands how it feels when you lose by one,” said Brooke, who wears the same Belmont jersey worn by her older sister. “It’s so nice to have someone to talk to about that, who I’m close to and just gets it.”
As of May 16, Belmont (11-6) ranked No. 14 out of 47 in the MIAA Division 1 Girls Lacrosse Power Rankings with three regular-season games remaining. The top 32 teams qualify for the tournament. Belmont learns its fate during the May 28 bracket release and will begin tournament play the following day or the day after.
While top scorers get most accolades, goalies like the Whalens play an incalculable role in team success. After losing three of four to start the season, Belmont steadied and recently won four straight, including a 13-12 upset of defending Division 1 state champion Central Catholic.
Coach Dan O’Brien referenced a pair of key fourth-quarter saves by Whalen, which enabled Belmont to extend a three-goal advantage.
“We were doing some things offensively that were working, but when they did get a stop and came down, they couldn’t get back into the game until the last minute,” O’Brien said. “The boost of confidence you get from a big stop is remarkable and can really change the momentum of a game, and Brooke did that.”
Brooke leans on Kendall, a 2021 Belmont High School graduate, for support and advice. Example: Brooke surrendered the go-ahead goal in the waning seconds of a midseason loss to Wayland and looked to Kendall for support.
“I just really tried to remind her that a lot of times as goalies we take the outcomes of the game and put it on our backs since we are the last person between the ball and the back of the net,” said Kendall, who recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in nursing. “If you were giving 100% and felt like you made the right decision, just be confident in that because there are going to be some really tough losses like that. … You just need to maintain confidence and move forward from there.”
Brooke stepped into the starting goalkeeper role this spring, replacing now-graduated Julia Herlihy. O’Brien worked Brooke into the varsity lineup during games last season in preparation. She showed flashes of promise, which made him “really excited” for her debut season as the starter.
“At this point in the season, she’s exceeded my expectations for sure,” he said. “I was really excited knowing that we had Brooke coming in and filling Julia’s position.”
Both Whalens began playing lacrosse in the fifth grade as field players. They both transitioned to goalkeeping before high school, Kendall by choice, and Brooke by necessity when another player on her team quit the position.
Brooke watched Kendall throughout her career while navigating her own. Coming into the season, Brooke thought she’d be nervous to take the reins. She felt excited instead. Belmont fell in the first round of last year’s postseason as the No. 13 seed. Brooke did not play in that game, but understands the weight of what’s to come.
“There’s definitely a lot of pressure, especially when it comes down to those last two minutes,” she said. “But it definitely helps sharing that pressure with my teammates and coaches, and having a sister who understands being in the net.”
