Lacrosse notebook: Records chase a secondary pursuit for Braintree’s Bella Duffy

The intensity within lacrosse brings fascinated Bella Duffy at a very young age and she uncovered herself playing competitively by third grade I definitely didn t pick it up very easily Duffy noted My first time in the yard it took me two hours to catch one ball It was intricate It s a hard sport but I stuck with it I just love the competitive nature It was so different from any sport that I had ever played before I kind of just fell in love with it from there started playing club the next year I ve just been going with it ever since Years later she has left an indelible mark in the Bay State Conference as one of its top scorers Now she is looking to finish what she started at Braintree and is off to a roaring start this spring Jillian Coene initially took over as coach of the Wamps in Duffy s first year at Braintree High School She brought a lot to the table as a freshman Coene noted It clearly revealed that she had a lot of talent I don t know what I would have done without her these last four years The Wamps improved during each of Duffy s first three seasons with their best performance coming last year As the No seed Braintree went - reaching the Round of Duffy was a key cog among the Wamps attack band We just got along so well together on the field disclosed Duffy At that point we had been playing together for three years so we had really great chemistry Kind of invariably knew where my friends were going to be and where my teammates were going to be Callie Burchhill Ava McDonald Claire Joyce on the attack we all just worked so well together Everything slowed and it was just seamless In one of the first games of the season against Oliver Ames a - success the senior eclipsed career points with a seven-goal outburst tacking on an assist Just a little over a week ago against Newton North she surpassed career points with two goals and an assist She s definitely a part of what me and my coaching staff were building upon disclosed Coene She definitely has a large role that she s fulfilling and she contributes in all different solutions whatever we ask of her Braintree s scoring record was set in by Grace Reinold points As of this week Duffy has registered overall goals So far this year she has goals and assists A former Sacred Heart University star Reinold coaches Duffy now during club season with Laxachusetts An ironic twist but Duffy believes it adds a fun layer to the whole story That reported the senior is keeping a humble mind I don t even know if she knows about the record chase Duffy disclosed about Reinold I didn t really even know that I was close until this year But I m not trying to focus on the numbers too much because then you start getting it stuck in your head thinking about scoring all the time You just want to do what s best for the crew If that means scoring that means scoring But keeping track of the numbers the entire time takes away from the match Obviously I would love to break the record but I m just trying to do what is best for the band The recruiting process in turned out to be stressful and was a roller coaster ride for Duffy She had a wave of schools reach out as soon as her window opened with countless possibilities Every day it felt like a new one was adding her to the radar another dropping her off However she later received a call from Iona and paid a visit to the campus in New York In short order the lacrosse standout chose to continue her career at the collegiate level with the Gaels Once I went to Iona I really just fell in love with it explained Duffy The coaching staff is absolutely incredible there I ve never met such amazing coaches for college at least in my entire life Those were easily my favorite college coaches The group heritage is just absolutely incredible and they re on an upward trajectory with their lacrosse band They re playing in the second round of the MAAC Tournament on Sunday so it s super exciting I m excited to be a part of the group Braintree is - with its next encounter slated for April following a long -day layoff You can bet that the Wamps will be relying heavily on Duffy as they make their final playoff push After that the sky s the limit for this Braintree star She ll have her four years in college announced Coene Whether she decides to maybe try to go to the professional league is really up to her I think she s totally capable of doing it It s just whether or not she wants to go that far or not