Lacrosse All-Star Game Played in the Name of the Late Roslyn L. Schulte

Know what happens when you mix pink with blue?  You get purple.

That’s the color in the Purple Heart, a special award presented to American service personnel wounded or killed in the line of duty while serving their country.

On May 20, 2009 First Lieutenant Roslyn L. Schulte of Ladue, graduate of John Burroughs and the United States Air Force Academy lost her life in a road-side bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan. She had big future plans, including marriage to a fellow Air Force officer.

She became the first air academy female graduate to die in the line of duty on the Global War on Terrorism. She was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart, Bronze Star and the National Intelligence Medal for Valor.

On Wednesday, on a hot clear night at Mary Institute Country Day School some 48 area lacrosse stars played a 60-minute all-star game in Roz’ honor. She was a star in her own right in lacrosse at Burroughs, captaining that team and the team at the air academy. She was passionate about the sport.

So too were her parents Bob and Susie Schulte of Ladue. The parents stood silently at midfield prior to the game, and accepted a plaque in her owner. Each end of the school year will mark another game played in the honor of the late Roz Schulte.

That all mattered a whole lot more than the outcome of two teams merely called the pink team and the blue team.

Maybe in the future, the teams will earn formal names.

Afterwards, Lauren Nickson of Villa Duchesne tied a neat bow around the entire package.

“This was an awesome experience. It was a great way to honor (Roslyn Schulte). I think the whole thing was really cool, and I expect that we have started a new tradition. The senior, headed off to Marquette University in Milwaukee was happy to be selected for the game.  “I hope we did well in her honor,” said the Villa grad.

Ladue’s coach Neal Theriault, coach of the blue squad realized the importance of the game.

“This was a lot of fun for our girls, but to be able to play for this particular cause was more important. We were able to go toe to toe and battle for this game. But playing a game in Roz’ memory was a lot more important,” said the Ladue coach.

For the record, the pink team broke a 15-all tie late in the game, and went on to victory at 20-18. For a while, it looked like some kind of overtime action might be a possibility.

The blue team was comprised of players from Burroughs, Ursuline Academy, Ladue, Parkway West, St. Joseph’s Academy, Parkway South, Webster Groves, Marquette, Rockwood Summit, Westminster, Whitfield  Academy and Barat Academy.

The pink team was made up of players from MICDS, Villa Duchesne, Lafayette, Nerinx Hall, O’Fallon (IL) Township, Eureka, Cor Jesu, Visitation Academy, Hazelwood West, Kirkwood, Clayton, Parkway North and Parkway Central.

Kathy Shortelle helped organize the first-ever game. The game was sponsored by the St. Louis Missouri Chapter of US Lacrosse. Many more of these all-star games will follow, that’s for sure.