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Emma Penczek cannot imagine a better ending to her high school career.
The senior midfielder set school and county records while leading Manchester Valley to an undefeated season and their second Class 2A state championship in three years and fifth overall in program history.
“Incredible,” Penczek said. “I couldn't have put together that season if I tried it again. It was just so memorable. Everything just kind of all came together, all of our hard work at practice and off the field all just came together so well and we were able to finish an undefeated season and win a state championship, which was amazing. I truly had the best time ever.”
Penczek has been named the USA Lacrosse High School Girls' Player National Player the Year. She scored 89 goals, dished out 56 assists, corralled 124 draw controls and caused 39 turnovers in her senior season.
“Emma's the type of player that is good at everything on the field,” Manchester Valley coach Shelly Brezicki said. “Oftentimes we find high school players that are really strong attackers or they're really good at defense or they're good on their draw circle. But Emma's just good at all of it.”
It’s the team’s success that matters most to her, but her name has secured a special spot in county lore. Penczek surpassed Lizzie Colson for the program scoring record late in April. Then she passed the 15-year-old Carroll County career goals record of former Century (Md.) standout Katie Schwarzmann. Both players went on to star at Maryland and for the U.S. Women's National Team.
Penczek graduates with 329 goals and 158 assists for 487 points, 437 draw controls and 122 caused turnovers. Those are the best marks across each category for anyone who ever has played at Manchester Valley.
“It says a lot about how she showed up ready every day,” Brezicki said. “You talk about really good players and they have off days. And Emma just doesn't have an off day. And I think that has to do with the amount of hours, the time she puts in, that people don't see.”
If Brezicki came into school on a Sunday to do some work, she often would find Penczek playing wall ball. After practices, Penczek moved to another field to fire more shots. There were countless more talks in Brezicki’s office. All those little things were instrumental in her development into a player that could handle high expectations, like being the No. 2 ranked recruit in the Class of 2025 by Inside Lacrosse.
“Pressure is a privilege and I've learned that from Coach B and from my parents as well, and I was able to talk to people about it and kind of fully understand that I want to be in those pressure situations,” she said. “It's just I have to learn how to handle it, and I think that's one thing that I did learn this year was I cannot be so focused on making mistakes or failing at something because failure is the first attempt of learning. And if I make a mistake, I just want to use it. As motivation to bounce back.”
Mistakes were few and far between in a perfect year for the Mavericks. The Mavericks finished 19-0 and had the highest goal differential of any team in the country to help earn the No. 4 ranking in the USA Lacrosse National Top 25 and the No. 1 ranking in the USA Lacrosse Public Top 25.
“We didn't overlook any teams,” Penczek said. “We definitely prepared for each and every team respectfully and we knew that we had to work for what we wanted to end up achieving as a team. And I think part of the achievements we had on the field kind came with how we all were connected with each other off the field.”
On the field, Penczek has been a game-changer since day one for Manchester Valley, supplying the Mavericks with an assortment of goals, assists, draw controls and caused turnovers each of her four seasons.
“She was able to not only make everyone around her better, but she was able to just help us find success everywhere,” Brezicki said. “So if she wasn't scoring goals, she was assisting. If she wasn’t assisting, she was winning draw controls. If she wasn't winning draw controls, she was causing havoc on the defensive end. And I think that's what makes her unique — she really is strong in every aspect of the game, including her IQ of the game.”
Manchester Valley has had three perfect seasons in program history; Penczek has been the headliner for two of them. She is one of 10 players graduating from this year’s team.
“Everything wouldn't be possible without that entire team and coaching staff,” Penczek said. “I couldn't imagine playing my senior year of lacrosse with anyone else, and I was certainly excited to end on such a high note.”
Penczek will continue her playing career at Clemson. She’s part of their 2025 recruiting class that is ranked No. 1 by Inside Lacrosse.
“Everyone on a college roster is top level lacrosse and I'm so excited to get to learn from everyone,” Penczek said. “So I think my biggest adjustment is just going to be the level of play and the level that I'm going to have to step up to that I think I know I can step up to.”
“I think she's going to be able to use her speed and quickness on the draw circle,” said Brezicki. “I think she's going to still bring that havoc to the defensive side. And I think she's just going to find ways to score. I really think it's going to be an immediate thing. I think she's going to make a huge impact at Clemson.”
Players of the year, all-region teams and rankings are compiled by USA Lacrosse Magazine writers with input from coaches around the country.
This content is produced independently of the official USA Lacrosse High School Awards program that includes All-American and All-Academic honorees.
Justin Feil grew up in Central PA before lacrosse arrived. He was introduced to the game while covering Bill Tierney and Chris Sailer’s Princeton teams. Feil enjoys writing for several publications, coaching and running and has completed 23 straight Boston Marathons. Feil has contributed to USA Lacrosse Magazine since 2009 and edits the national high school rankings.
