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Livingston junior center back Casey Conklin (21) is picture of concentration as she sends ball upfield vs. West Orange in this past Saturday's Essex County Tournament final. In the second photo she displays ECT championship plaque along with fellow defender Lexi Viola following the Lancers' 1-0 win as team had chance to celebrate its second consecutive ECT title. In bottom photo, the Ohio State-bound Conklin (right) makes her move upfield in a lacrosse game last spring in midst of splendid sophomore season. For her efforts in the girls soccer ECT final Conklin is the Parisi Fairfield/Sideline Chatterl Athlete of the Week. (Photos by Gene Nann - genenann.smugmug.com and Sideline Chatter)

LIVINGSTON- Brian Carr appreciates the multiple talents of his junior center back Casey Conklin as he prepares his Livingston Lancers (13-2-1) to move from another championship run in the Essex County Tournament to the rigors of the North 1, Group 4 state tournament.

“Casey is an unreal, elite athlete,” said the veteran head coach who directed his No. 2-seeded side to a second straight ECT title with this past Saturday’s 1-0 victory over fourth-seeded West Orange at the Lancers’ Allen ‘Jake’ Jacobson Memorial Field. “Everything she does is hyper-competitive because she competes at such a high level and she is an important part of our defense.”

The versatile 5-foot-4 Conklin, who remains a burgeoning talent on the rise at 16 years of age, has made a verbal commitment to play Division I women’s lacrosse at Ohio State University.

She comes from a very athletic family which includes her dad Dave, who is the longtime head ice hockey coach at Livingston High School.

For her efforts as one of the anchors of the Lancers’ back line in their recent ECT championship run, the valuable defender is the latest Parisi Fairfield/Sideline Chatter Athlete of the Week.

Conklin, along with teammates including fellow junior Lexi Viola, form a sturdy force in front of superb senior goalkeeper Antonia Giordano for Livingston, and the approach, while very organized and proficient, also has its calming element.

“While we want to keep our team motivated, and always try to provide encouragement to our offense, we also try to be relaxed on defense and not stress under pressure,” said the well-spoken 2-sport standout. “Whenever we attack, we all know where to go when we come back, and we’re ready to look to slow down the other team's attack.

“Strong defense is a big part of our success, and I just try and do my part.”

Conklin and company made it through a fairly stressful ECT semifinal when they played to a 0-0 tie through regulation and two overtime periods with third-seeded Montclair, but the Lancers were able to survive and advance thanks to winning the tie-breaking penalty kick shootout, 6-5.

Viola did an excellent job marking Montclair’s star Morgan Zinn, while Conklin did her part as well on the defensive end against a talented Mounties side.

“We really have to be organized throughout the entire game and never slack off,” said Viola, who is the team’s superb left back. “If there is a ball that bounces behind us it’s important that we all move back together and it’s great to have Casey in the middle for us.”  

The latest ECT title is Livingston’s eighth while playing in its 16th final, totals which are both second in tourney history behind Montclair’s record 16 titles and 23 finals.

This season also marked the sixth straight ECT that the Lancers and Mountaineers had met in either the semis or finals with Livingston appearing in four of the past five finals and six of the last eight championship matches while earning four titles during that stretch of time since 2016. 

For Conklin, who has 1 goal and 1 assist so far this season, the fall spent with Livingston Lancers soccer is an enjoyable time on the pitch as she also gets to use a somewhat different skill set from lacrosse, while also being around a different set of teammates and coaches during the autumn campaign before getting ready once again for another extensive stretch in lacrosse, both in the springtime with the high school team, and in the summer with travel, camps and showcases.

“Most of my free time is spent with training when I’m not playing lacrosse or soccer,” she said. “Playing two sports at Livingston is a lot of fun, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

The Lancers girls lacrosse program has been improving each season and Conklin has been a big part of that ascension with a terrific all-around sophomore season in 2024 including a team-leading 76 goals, 24 assists and 130 draw controls for last spring’s successful 13-6 squad.

“The entire mindset of the team changed when coach (Kelly) Nann came in and took over the program,” said Conklin. “We all have a better connection.”

After attending several lacrosse camps, the Livingston standout continued to develop strong ties with Ohio State, a school where her big sister Avery had played club lacrosse after excelling during her own high school days at Livingston.

The Buckeyes, who were 8-9 last spring while facing five of the Top 10 teams in the nation under first-year head coach Amanda Moore, have a Jersey connection of sorts with current Garden State players on the roster in senior defender Margaret Lawler from perennial South Jersey powerhouse Moorestown, senior midfielder Annika Spoor from Oak Knoll and sophomore midfielder Lexie Kupka of Mendham.

“Ohio State has been my dream school forever,” said Conklin, who also plays for Building Blocks Lacrosse. “I attended many camps and developed a great connection with all the lacrosse coaches there.”

Casey will one day become the latest in a line of Conklins who have played sports at a strong level, including in college. Her dad Dave went from excelling at Livingston High School to playing collegiate ice hockey at the University of Delaware, and her grandfather Donald McKay - her mom Liz’s dad  - was a football and lacrosse player at Princeton University.

Her brother Brett, who is currently a sophomore student at the University of Georgia, excelled on the ice for their dad on a successful Livingston Lancers ice hockey squad.

Along with her active athletic calendar, Casey does a good job of keeping up with her studies at Livingston, rated as one of New Jersey’s better academic high schools.

“My favorite classes right now are English and Human Behavior,” she said. “I’m interested on how the human mind works and am thinking about perhaps following a path toward working in the therapy field; and I’m also interested in marketing, so we’ll see what happens as far as what I decide to pursue in the future.

“Right now, I’m just enjoying my junior year in high school and trying to help the Livingston soccer team win as many games as we can the rest of the way, including – hopefully- a state championship!”   

Follow Steve Tober on 'X' @Chattermeister  

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Parisi Speed School has been empowering athletes for over 30 years, since 1992. As the industry leader in youth performance training in the country, they have successfully trained over 1,000,000 athletes to include schools, teams, youth organizations and individual athletes from 7 years of age to the Pros in MLB, NFL, MLS, NBA and WNBA.

Parents and coaches are invited to visit their website for additional information at www.parisifairfield.com or contact their Director, John Cirilo at 973 227-0199.  

Livingston's Casey Conkln (21) moves ball downfield and later prepares to acknowledge teammate Dina Bojkovic (20) following Lancers 1-0 win over West Orange in Oct. 26th ECT final. Conklin comes from athletic family including her dad Dave who is Lancers' veteran ice hockey coach.

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