Dana Dobbie, Katrina Dowd and Hannah Nielsen have been on the earth 96 years combined, and have been playing lacrosse nearly that long.

That experience, along with 10 World Cup appearances, puts them well ahead of most of their peers in the Women’s Professional Lacrosse League where they share 22 goals and 34 points on their three teams going into Saturday’s regular-season finales. All three are leading scorers for their teams, and they’re pulling for each other to continue to excel.

“Hannah and I both started playing on the Junior World Cup campaign at the same time,” said Dobbie, the veteran of the trio at 34 years old. “She’s younger than me. I’m definitely so proud of that group of players. It’s easier to not play at our age than it is to continue to play. Not only are they playing, but they’re playing and showcasing to the whole league what it should look like. They’re not just putting some minutes in on the field, they’re living highlight reels every time they go out and play.”

Dobbie, a member of the last three Canadian national teams at the World Cup, is tied with Marie McCool for the Brave team lead in goals with eight to go with one assist. The Brave will take on the Pride at 1 p.m. Saturday at Hofstra University’s John M. Shuart in a battle of 2-1 teams fighting for second place.

“Being in that championship last year gave us higher expectations for this year,” Dobbie said. “It’s not a bad thing. It’s just a different team philosophy. When we’re in a game and winning, it’s not a surprise, but if we’re not winning we have a greater sense of let’s grit this out and find a way. We’re a returning championship team from last year and if we didn’t make that game, everyone would be super disappointed.”

The second game of the doubleheader at 3 p.m. features Dowd’s Fight vs. Nielsen’s Fire. Dowd, 31, who played for the United States national team in the 2013 World Cup and traveled as an emergency fill-in for them in 2009, leads a balanced Fight attack with 12 points on seven goals and five assists.

“We’ve still got it,” Dowd said. “We can still hang with the young girls.”

The 3-0 first-place Fight are trying to stay undefeated while Nielsen hopes to guide the Fire to their first win. The ultra-competitive Nielsen will do everything in her power to pull out a win after a frustrating start for the team.

“Hannah Nielsen is one of the best ever,” Dowd said. “Every kid should go and watch her play. It is one of a kind. She’s amazing. I’m one of her biggest fans. People need to watch her play. She’s unbelievable.”

Nielsen, 31, who made the first of four World Cups for Australia at age 17, missed the first WPLL game due to her best friend’s engagement, but over the last two games has amassed eight more points than anyone else on the Fire. She has seven goals and six assists for a team-leading 13 points.

“I feel like I’m getting better with age,” Nielsen said. “When you’re young, you don’t really know how to train the most efficiently. I put more stock in recovery and taking care of my body. There’s definitely struggles, but I feel great. I’m working out pretty hard. And I’m so excited to play. I’m excited to be on the field. Getting to play outside of college with great players, it’s something I don’t take for granted.”

All three coach in college. Nielsen is the coach at Michigan, which comes off its best season in school history, Dowd returned to North Carolina and helped it reach the final four and Dobbie is the associate head coach at Loyola, which won the Patriot League. They are relishing the opportunity to play in the summer. None of them foresaw the chance 10 years ago.

“It’s been awesome,” Dowd said. “When I graduated college, and even when I was in college, I didn’t even dream about playing pro. The dream was always to play for Team USA. It wasn’t something I thought about. It’s been really amazing that we’re able to continue to play on weekends and play professionally and people come out to the games and we get a paycheck. To get to take the game to another level is exciting, and to stay in the game is great. I’m one of the oldest players in the league. I love being out there and competing. Everyone is out there to compete and win and do their best.”

Dobbie has been playing 30 years and has no intention of stopping now. She looks forward to every opportunity to play that she can get.

“I started playing lacrosse when I was 4 years old,” Dobbie said. “When college ended, when we only had world championships every four years, you lose that self-identity in the years in between. Hannah, Katrina and I, we still coach at a high level, but there’s nothing like playing at a high level. To compete every game at the highest level is everything. We have a huge sense of gratitude.

“I had played in the Sunday pick-up leagues. While that’s fun, it definitely doesn’t fill the void of that competition zone and having to train every day to be at your best come Saturday or Friday night.”

After the WPLL’s July 6 games were canceled due to thunderstorms, Dobbie was thrilled that they were moved to the Ridley Athletic Center on Loyola University’s campus, where she coaches.

“It was incredible,” Dobbie said. “I’ve only coached on this field. I’ve never actually played a live game on that. To experience Ridley come game time, it was such a cool experience that I was able to have the opportunity to do.”

All three veterans intend to be back in Maryland in 2021 for the Women’s World Championships that will be hosted by nearby Towson.

“I’m looking forward to playing,” Nielsen said. “It’s still a special thing to play at this age and represent your country. It’s something I’m looking forward to, as long as I can stay healthy. My first World Cup in 2003 was in Towson. For it to be at Towson, and end everything where it all started it would be a cool reflective moment. I’m looking forward to playing and going for another one.”

Said Dobbie on retirement: “I got some great advice from Julie Foudy who played on US national team. ‘Don’t put a time line on retirement. Be in the moment, enjoy the moment. When it comes time to hang up your cleats, you’ll know it.’ I think I’ve tried to live in that space and perspective. I’m still competing at the highest level. I feel physically as fit this summer as I did at the last World Cup. I feel fortunate I’m able to do that. I’ll continue to do that as long as I can. I’m not putting a timeline on it, just trying to appreciate the moment and living in that as much as possible.”

The WPLL is helping to keep players in game shape and primed for top competition. It’s something that was missing four years ago.

“I remember 2013 and 2017 and literally the first game you played is the first game you played in four years,” said Nielsen, who unlike Dowd and Dobbie did not play in the UWLX that started in 2016. “Now to have a league where you can get reps in and it forces you to keep a stick in your hands if you want to play well, it’s great preparation and it’s fun. As a young kid, I wanted to be the best and be a professional athlete in some sense.”

Playing in the WPLL has helped them stay on top of their game. All three are devoted to working out at their respective schools, and the WPLL gives them a competitive aspect that they can’t get elsewhere.

“You have to stay sharp,” Dowd said. “I’m so passionate about the game and I’m really passionate about stickwork and all the little skills it takes to be a good player. That is what made me fall in love with lacrosse. That has not changed – all the little things. That part is easy to stay engaged and committed. And you have to work out and stay prepared. It’s going to take working out, shooting, and it’s going to take commitment. It’s not easy to do it. As a mature player, you understand what it’s going to take and then you go out and have fun and you’re ready to go.”

Dobbie says it’s not getting easier. She thinks defenders and goalies are more athletic than ever. And the WPLL has allowed teams to be more physical, and she’s adapted how she plays.

“I was a midfielder my whole life,” Dobbie said. “A lot of my training was focused on fitness and speed and a lot of time spent on defense because that wasn’t my best thing. Now it’s going to more of a box lacrosse style. It’s all tight, freeing your hands, popping open. It’s a good thing that I have that box lacrosse experience. That’s tied into the pro level and how physical the defense is and you have to be able to handle the pressure and handle the ball.”

The three are role models for sustaining a high level of play well beyond their college playing days. They continue to be among the best in a league that is made up primarily of 20-somethings.

“For some of the younger players in the league, it’s probably exciting to know in your 30s you can still compete at a high level,” Dowd said. “You can still try to dominate the game. It’s cool. All three of us are attackers. It’s one of the most elite, highly skilled positions. The fact that all of us hold roster spots and play well is really cool. It’s pretty unique. I think it helps that all three of us coach at the collegiate level so we all think about the game of lacrosse all the time, how can we get players and our team to perform and create great offenses that are hard to defend? And Dana and Hannah have incredible passion. We have an outlet to go and be the best players.”

After a recent game, a younger player asked Nielsen how she could sustain such a high level of play when she was struggling so recently out of college. Nielsen answered that it comes down to passion.

“Dana is one of my best friends,” Nielsen said. “Katrina Dowd is someone I played in college with. There’s so much respect for each other. We all know what we’re going through and know how much we love the sport. The ones that make it, to still be playing when you’re 30-plus, you have to have a love for it. You have to be invested in the game to be involved this long in it.”