By Christopher Tremblay

Growing up, Caleigh Brown was like any other normal kid; she was very athletic and enjoyed playing sports, especially when she was winning. Up until the sixth grade, she was actively involved in soccer and swimming on a regular basis. 

When she was 12 years old and in the sixth grade, however the young athletic girl suddenly found out she’d be entering a very different monumental battle. She was diagnosed with Leukemia and found herself going through treatment into the seventh grade, and with the diagnosis, the Norwood resident was going out of her mind.

“I suddenly found myself in outpatient every day for six months going through treatment,” Brown said. “Not only was I fighting the disease, but it also prevented me from doing the sports that I really enjoyed and that was tough, especially someone who loved being active.”

After six months of treatment and no sports, Brown was told she was cancer free, but while that was a big sigh of relief, the young athlete was about to endure another setback, one that would lead to a serious love of another sport. 

Following her treatment, Brown was not allowed to go back to her swimming right away, so the youngster started to search for something to take its place. 

“I was just looking for another sport to get involved in and lacrosse was an up-and-coming sport in Norwood, so I gave it a try and found that I loved it,” Brown said. “Being a competitive person, the nature of the game is one in which you can’t do much without your teammates and that really drew me in.”

Lacrosse not only became a sport which Brown loved with passion, her younger siblings Micaela and Quinlan also began playing the sport, and eventually the youngest Brown sibling (Caitlin) would join her sisters on the field. 

Although she was able to return to the sports, things were very different from when she left. Despite not being able to be on the field with her teammates, Brown was not only on the sidelines cheering her team on, but she was also pushing herself harder, not just for herself but everyone around her.

“Coming back was very tough; I thought that I was going to get right back into sports and do the things that I was used to, but I didn’t realize that’s not the way things worked,” Brown said. “Sports are a big part of who I am, and I was struggling to get back. I wanted to jump back into the game and be myself, but I couldn’t and that was driving me insane.”

It may have taken her a few months to fully get back to the point she once was, but the Norwood native said all the sweat and tears were well worth it. It was a hard reality, but one she eventually overcame.

“Prior to the diagnosis, I was a good swimmer and a very athletic individual so not being able to take part in the sports that I loved really did a number on my body,” Brown said “I didn’t have the concept that being that sick would interfere that much with my sports. It was very frustrating as I couldn’t do what I wanted to do right away.”

It was the spring of seventh grade when Brown and her siblings came across lacrosse. During the early years of playing the sport, the eventual high school superstar would play the majority of her time in the field, but would occasionally slide into the goalie position; a position that would eventually come back to her in her later high school years. 

Having missed her freshman year because of Covid, Brown took to the field in her sophomore campaign trying to get the Norwood lacrosse program established. According to Mustang Coach Mike Lodge, the sophomore had herself a good first year, but it would be her junior season that changed everything.

“That year (her junior season), we had no goalie and Caleigh came to me saying that she could take on the role,” the Norwood Coach said. “After seeing all the work that she had put into becoming a field player, I told her to take the weekend to think about it. I’m not sure how much she thought about it, but she returned on Monday and told me that she’d be playing goalie.”

Brown was not worried about her status or what she could do on the field. She was only interested in helping the team out and accomplishing their dreams.

“It wasn’t like I didn’t know the position at all,” Brown said. “I felt that I had the experience to play the position and I didn’t mind doing it to help the team out. Having played the position before, I was confident that I could step in and fill the void for the team.”

The junior took over the position for the better of the team; having a steady individual in net game after game was better for the team instead of rotating girls in and out of the position. She also really didn’t think that it would last more than that one year. 

“There were no expectations of doing this into the future.” Brown said. “I was taking over the position for the better of the team. It was like, let’s do this and see what comes out of it; if I love it, maybe I’ll do it again the following year, but there was nothing set in stone following that season.”

With Brown guarding the goal, Norwood earned themselves a chance to take part in a preliminary game in the Division 2 State Tournament. Norwood fell to Melrose 16-12 in that game, and despite the loss, it was a first for the Mustang’s girls lacrosse team. With Norwood making the program’s first ever tournament appearance, Brown decided to hold down the goalie position one final time her senior season in hope that the team could once again get into the tournament. Norwood would once again make it to the tournament, but this time fell to Grafton in the Round of 32.

“As a freshman, I never thought about this team making the tournament,” Brown said. “Lacrosse was not a big thing in Norwood at the time. We just wanted to go out and play the game. Making the program’s first tournament appearance was thrilling and I am so proud of that team and what they accomplished that year. Getting back there the next year was even better.”

After earning that spot in the tournament as a junior, Brown was confident that the team could get back there again in her senior season as the girls had all been playing together for a long time and they were beginning to gel with one another. 

Earning back-to-back Division 2 State Tournament appearances is nothing but remarkable to Lodge.

“Caleigh was a good player, but a better goalie; especially for someone who only began playing the position only two years ago,” Lodge said. “It took her some time to gain her confidence in goal, but once she did she was phenomenal and was a leader on the team. What’s even more amazing is that she had cancer and didn’t know if she’d survive and here she is today.”

As Brown heads off to college, she is unsure if lacrosse will be in her future. She is hoping to play on a club team but is undecided if it will be lacrosse or swimming.

“We’ll have to wait and see how things go once I get to college, but either way lacrosse will hold a place in my heart so its going to be a tough decision,” Brown said.