Lacrosse Revised

Lacrosse is not just a sport, but a lifestyle. It requires athleticism, coordination, and most importantly - passion. When you're young, it's so innocent and fun. The coaches hand you a stick and teach you how to throw and catch. You probably suck at first but you learn fast. They take you to the high school games and you watch in awe just hoping that you'll be that good one day. When you're young, the rules are simplified, the coaches tell you good job (even after you mess up), and it's all fun and games. 

...until you get older

You get to high school and you think you're the big shot on campus because you're good at your sport, your high school team won the state championship, and you're going off to play in college. But everyday isn't this charming. When I was in high school, I got my first concussion. Meanwhile, I didn't want to sit out so I never told my coach. One week later, I got hit in the head again. I remember trying to sit through pre-calc with a throbbing headache and absolutely no focus. In fact, my teacher pulled me aside after class because he was worried about me. It took rest, sleep, and sitting in dark rooms...but my head healed and I obviously kept playing. 

Fast forward to your college career....


You get to college and realize that the pace of the game has drastically changed since high school. Everyone is good and if you're not moving the ball fast enough, you might as well get out of the drill. Your alarm goes off in the morning and the last thing you want to do is get up and go train. You would do anything for 30 more minutes of sleep. Half the mornings you wake up and wonder what you're doing with your life. 

Wake up. Eat breakfast. Go practice for four hours. Run until you're legs don't want to move. Get yelled at by your coach. Go to class for a couple hours. Sit in class starving because you don't have time to eat lunch. Go home. Eat dinner. Try to stay awake while you attempt to do your homework. Go to bed. Wake up. Repeat.

It's a constant cycle of sleep deprivation, stress, being sore, and being ridiculously hungry ALL the time. It's no longer that thing in your life that you do on the weekends for fun and to stay active. It's a full time job. You're here to play lacrosse (and do your schoolwork if you have time). Some days (if you're lucky), you'll even get a good night of sleep. You'll learn to appreciate those nights where you get 6 or 7 hours. Sleeping in? Oh, please. You won't even remember what that's like anymore. You don't get to sleep in. You have to wake up ready to go with full force every morning. Coffee will be your new best friend. Don't feel like working out today? Too bad. You have to do it anyways. You're stick work isn't looking good today? Get on the line. That's a sprint.

Sometimes, I forget I'm at school to actually go to school. This sport will take over your life.

But then you get to season. You're hard work starts to pay off and some days, it becomes that magical sport again. Just like it was growing up. That feeling of winning a game, scoring a goal, looking over and knowing that all those people are here to watch you play - to succeed. On those days, it's worth the stress, the tears, the mental and physical breakdowns. Each player is their own artist on the field with their own crazy thoughts screaming in their head.

It's like an addiction. You hate it some days but you can't imagine your life without it. There's no turning back. I've been playing lacrosse since third grade. It's a defining part of who I am. I love being pushed to get better everyday. I  remember road trips to Maryland with my team when I was younger. My dad would always be brutally honest with me so I always knew immediately if I played well or if I was having a bad day. But then he would follow up with advice on how to improve for the next game. At the time, I never wanted to hear it. Looking back, I'm so appreciative that I had his support. We would have big team dinners and hydrate through perfectly red watermelon in between games. 10 years later and none of that has changed. My dad still gives me advice on how to become a better athlete (but now the advice is usually given through the phone). We still have team dinners and tailgates. I still love watermelon just as much as I did when I was younger. But most importantly, my team is still my family. I look around on the field, and I see an entire team of girls that are not only my best friends, but my family. Every single one of them will have my back, stand up for me, and pick me up if I'm down. They're here to support you both on and off the field. They hate the sport with you and they love the sport with you.