On Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, Central Bucks East seniors Sydney Lafferty, Katie Szczypiorski & Morgan Harrington were recognized for committing to play collegiate field hockey.
Morgan Harrington – University of New Haven (Field Hockey)
Major: Biology
Final list of colleges: New Haven, Pace, Frostburg
Reasons for choosing New Haven: “I just really liked the team and the atmosphere New Haven had. It’s also a pretty campus, and I liked the location.”
What was the progression that led you to competing in field hockey at the collegiate level? “I didn’t start thinking about it until pretty late – the beginning of junior year, so I was kind of behind, but I figured out I wanted to continue playing
in college and I wanted the additional four years because I wasn’t ready to give it up.”
CB East coach Emma Rosenthal: “Morgan’s sophomore season was completely transformational. I think out of everybody on the team in her four seasons, she has been the most improved person by far. Her first varsity playing time was a playoff game against CB West, a one-goal game where I put her in at center back in the fourth quarter of the game. As a sophomore who had never gone onto the varsity field, you would have had no idea that was her first time playing in a varsity. She stepped out with such maturity, she was so calm, and she really took that role and ran with it.
“Morgan is somebody that really gets the highest compliment out there that other officials and other coaches come up to me after the game and say, ‘Wow, that number 33 really is something.’ And to have somebody else recognize your talents I think is the highest compliment of all. I got to see Morgan every single day work her butt off at practice, and I get to appreciate how well she plays the game, and it’s nice to hear others give that same compliment as well.
“Morgan’s absolutely going to crush it in the next four years. She’s so deserving of this. She’s somebody the underclassmen really look to, and she’s someone that’s really a killer on the field. She’s super positive and a fun teammate, and she’s going to do great things next season.”
About Morgan:
Favorite food: Mac & Cheese
Favorite movie: The Notebook
Favorite music: Country/Ty Myers
Sydney Lafferty – Tufts University (Field Hockey)
Major: Undecided/Something STEM related
Final list of colleges: Tufts, RPI, Merrimack
Reasons for choosing Tufts: “I liked how they had a really good balance between good academics and very good athletics – it was very even.”
What was the progression that led you to competing in field hockey at the collegiate level? “It was pretty early when I decided I’d like to play – maybe eighth or ninth grade. I started playing in seventh grade, and I already knew I wanted
to play hockey in college, so it was an easy choice.”
CB East coach Emma Rosenthal: “Sydney is one of the most determined people in anything that she puts her mind to. We do team races during the preseason, and it was her freshman or sophomore year we had a race to eat an entire watermelon. Sydney raced her heart out eating that entire watermelon, and she’ll talk about it to this day that she doesn’t like watermelon anymore, but she was probably one of the first people to finish. That is just her competitive spirit, her competitive energy.
“In the offseason, Sydney is the definition of working hard when nobody is watching. She is so incredibly passionate about this team, she is passionate about being better for herself and her teammates, and she really puts the work in throughout the entire offseason and the entire season to be the best version of herself. She’s passionate beyond belief, but she’s also one of the funniest people. Syd has grown absolutely substantially as a person and as a player. Tufts is really getting a special one in Sydney.”
About Sydney:
Favorite food: Quesadillas
Favorite movie: Top Gun
Favorite music: Country/Morgan Wallen
Katie Szczypiorski – Converse University (Field Hockey)
Major: Elementary Education
Final list of colleges: Converse, West Chester, East Stroudsburg
Reasons for choosing Converse: “I really fell in love with the coach, the team atmosphere and the team culture, and that meant a lot to me. And I just fell in love right away with the campus, and the academics are amazing opportunities for me.”
What was the progression that led you to competing in lacrosse at the collegiate level? “I was pretty late to the recruiting process. I’ve been playing hockey for 11 years, and I knew I wanted to play in college beginning of junior year.”
CB East coach Emma Rosenthal: “Katie is a winner, a winner beyond belief. This season Katie played every single minute of every single game except when she came off the field and said, ‘Emma, I just threw up.’ She literally works herself to
exhaustion, giving her all for her teammates because that’s really who she does it for. As a defender, Katie doesn’t necessarily have the stats that a forward of her caliber would have, so she really does everything for her team. She has been a four-year varsity starter, starting at the left back position which really is probably the most difficult position to play on the field. She has a tremendous amount of heart, and the support that comes from her family – you give what you get. Katie gets such great support, and she gives it right back to her teammates. She is somebody that every single underclassmen looks to when they need advice, when they need a hug. Anything on or off the field – everybody knows that Katie is in there for her.
“As the only freshman on the varsity team, Katie was really adopted by the upperclassmen, and she turned around and gave that exact same support to every underclassmen that followed her. Katie is a fantastic example of what it means to be part of our program, what it means to be a CB East Patriot and what it means to be part of this family. I know that Katie’s legacy will carry the year, and she will do tremendous things at Converse.”
About Katie:
Favorite food: Steak
Favorite TV show: Friends
Favorite music: Country
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