Caitlin “Poppy” Van Sickle was a three-time first team All-American in field hockey at University of North Carolina and a member of the United State Olympic team in 2016. At Tower Hill, she was Delaware’s Player of the Year in two sports.
At Chapel Hill, she was three times the Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year and led the Tar Heels to the 2009 NCAA championship. She started all four years and earned first-team All-America, All-Atlantic Coast Conference, and All-ACC Tournament honors in her sophomore, junior and senior seasons.
She helped the Tar Heels to ACC titles in 2011 and 2012 and was the ACC Tournament MVP in 2012 as a senior. She assisted on the game-winning goal in the 2009 NCAA Championship and played in the title game all four years. UNC named its Defensive Player of the Year Award after her.
After graduating from UNC in 2013, Van Sickle played six years for the U.S. National Team. That run included 148 international caps and appearances at the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil and the 2019 Pan American Games in Peru, where the U.S. won a bronze medal.
At Tower Hill, she was named the state’s player of the year in two sports – field hockey and lacrosse – and second-team All-State in basketball. An on-line publication named her Delaware’s high school athlete of the year for 2007-08. After retiring from her playing career in 2019, she turned to coaching, first as Director of Powerhouse Field Hockey Club in Wayne, Pa., then at Princeton in 2021, and since 2022, at her alma mater, University of North Carolina.