Varsity
            Head Coach- Lynda McCandlish
            Assistant- Cyndy Youker
            Volunteer Renee DiDonato

Lynda is in her first season as head coach of the Upper Arlington Golden Bears. Graduating from Upper Arlington in 2002, Coach McCandlish went on to play Division I lacrosse at Northwestern University. When Lynda was a freshman it was Northwestern's second year being a program. In 4 short years, Lynda, as a junior, helped the wildcats win their first National Championship. This was unprecedented as no school outside the eastern conference had ever won the championship, let alone in only 4 years of being a program. The wildcats went on to win back-to-back national championships her senior year. Kelly Amonte Hiller was Lynda's coach and helped to innovate the game of lacrosse and grow interest across America especially in the Midwest. Lynda was lucky enough to learn and play with the best and is now very excited to help Upper Arlington take their program to the next level.

Lynda's career started in 7th grade. As soon as she picked up a stick she loved the sport and knew it was going to be a big part of her life. Making Varsity as a Freshman in High School, Lynda quickly became a big impact to the Golden Bears. With Wendy Gallapoo's direction, Lynda earned various awards through out her time at UA. She received Honorable Mention All- America her Junior year and First Team All- America her Senior Year. In her Career at UAHS she set records (which Kristin, her little sister broke) and helped lead the team to win their first State Championship in 2002 beating Columbus Academy in the finals. Renee, Colby and Caitlin all shared the glory too. It's exciting that they all can come back and continue contributing to the
program.

After Graduating Northwestern in 2006, Lynda traveled to Australia, New Zealand and Fiji for a little over a year. Upon returning home, Lynda was excited to have the opportunity to be the head coach at Upper Arlington. In her free time outside of lacrosse, Lynda enjoys snow boarding, outdoor sports, laughing and traveling.
    

Cyndy Youker is in her 10th season coaching lacrosse at Upper Arlington High School. Coach Youker played college lacrosse at Cornell University and was inducted into the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame in 1985 for Ice Hockey and Lacrosse. During the early 1990's, Coach Youker coached the UAHS Freshman team. In 1993 Coach Youker became a rated official and officiated lacrosse at the high school and Division 3 college level for the next 7 years. In 1999 Coach Youker returned to UAHS to coach the JV squad and assist at the Varsity level. She's been a Varsity assistant since 2001.

Coach Youker is also involved in the Upper Arlington Lacrosse Association where she coaches and helps coordinate their summer leagues and clinics. For the last several years she has also led a group of middle school girls for out-of-state play in venues such as the Star-Spangled Banner Tournament. In addition to coaching lacrosse, Coach Youker works as a marketing manager at a not-for-profit membership organization, which serves libraries and research organizations around the world. She also referees field hockey, enjoys running, bicycling and reading.
    

Renee DiDonato is entering her first year as an assistant coach for the Golden Bears. Her lacrosse career began in 7th grade when she played midfield for Hastings Middle School. However, she claims that her career really started when she and her friend, head coach Lynda McCandlish, made the Upper Arlington High School Varsity team as freshman, as the two made it their goal to win the State Championship by their senior year.During her high school career, Renee received many accolades in both lacrosse and field hockey including Team Best Defensive Player, First Team All-Ohio, Academic All-Ohio and was chosen to play for the Great Lakes National Tournament Team.

As captains their senior year, Renee and Lynda lead the team to Upper Arlington's first State Championship.Renee went on to play NCAA Division I Field Hockey at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. She excelled in athletics as well as academics at Holy Cross. Renee earned the Patriot League Scholar Athlete Award and was part of the NFHCA Division I National Academic Squad. She is currently a student at The Ohio State College of Dentistry.
  

Caitlin Murray is currently a senior studying english and business at The Ohio State University. Her lacrosse experience started at Hastings Middle school and continued at Upper Arlington High School where she was a three-year varsity letter winner for the Golden Bears. Caitlin was a member of the 2002 Upper Arlington Women's Lacrosse State Championship team, and a member of the 2003 State Runners-up team. As a senior at Upper Arlington, she also won the team award for "Most Improved Player".

Upon graduation, Caitlin was elected president of the Ohio University Women's Club Lacrosse Team. She served as president for a term and then transferred to The Ohio State University where she also played at the club level. In her spare time, Caitlin enjoys reading, traveling, running, and the weather.