Athletes of the Week April 17
Layla Conn
Layla rolls with the confident swagger of a coach’s kid. She has a high athletic IQ, is fearless and 100% unselfish. A junior field hockey and lacrosse player at Cape, she has bided her time coming up through a stacked system, and she’s now starting on defense for the lacrosse team. Coach Lindsey Underwood: “Layla has come a very long way. Her one-on-one defense was extremely strong against Queen Anne’s and she has been working every day to make her teammates better. She’s extremely scrappy and gritty for us on defense. She had multiple caused turnovers against [Queen Anne’s] and has really started using her voice on defense.” The bigger the games, the more traffic on the defensive end of the field where fast attackers can be a nightmare to handle. Layla has proven to be unflinchingly up to the task. Sister Finley Conn is a sixth-grader on the Fred Thomas lacrosse team. Mom is Clara Conn, the principal of Milton Elementary.
Haley Gamuciello
Lacrosse defenses should game plan and account for Haley because there is no accounting for her quickness and deftness as she slashes to the goal, catching feeds and burying shots. Haley recorded 11 goals and two assists over three games in four days against top-flight competition in Kent Island, Marriotts Ridge and Queen Anne’s. She passed the milestone of 100 career points as a junior on a team that shares the ball. She also played basketball for coach Ron Dukes along with her lacrosse mates Ally Diehl, Amara Fruchtman, Mikaela Gordon and Mairead Rishko. Haley also plays for the Eastern Shore Lacrosse Club. She scored 29 goals as a freshman, including two in the state championship game, and 45 as a sophomore, including three in the state championship game. Haley said, "When not playing team sports, I love to surf, snowboard and train.” Haley’s forte is scoring multiple goals in the biggest game in her history. Haley has committed to Delaware along with Diehl and Rishko
Gideon Sammons
This Sussex Academy junior has been a key part of the Seahawks' offense this year. Gideon is second on the boys' lacrosse team with 14 goals. In the lads' 10-9 loss to Tower Hill April 10, Gideon scored four times and played some of the best lacrosse of his career, according to coach Andrew Fox. Gideon followed up that effort with a hat trick against Woodbridge April 15. He added two assists in the 17-2 win. Earlier in Gideon’s career, defenses used to key in on him, but with contributors all over the field this year, he is finding more space to crank his shot into the back of the net. While Gideon could probably play at the next level, his family has a proud history of serving in the Air Force, dating back to his great-grandfather. His sister is currently stationed in Japan. Gideon is set to join the Air Force after he graduates.
Channing Smith
A sophomore honors student on the Cape lacrosse team, Channing is known as an old-school midfielder who plays offense, defense and takes face-offs when the team needs it. "Channing brings a strong physical presence to our defensive midfield unit and has developed into a great offensive threat," said Vikings assistant coach Jack Lingo. Arguably one of the the hardest workers on the Cape squad, Channing works out every day at 4 a.m. during the offseason at Trident Training and is dedicated tirelessly to his stick skills on the lax field. He is a Morgan's Message ambassador at Cape, and when not on the lacrosse field, one can find him fishing or playing travel lacrosse for the Coastal Lacrosse Academy or Casey Powell Foundation Lacrosse.
