A tense energy was carried across the field on February 1st at 11AM, as a buzzer rang to initiate the Southwestern University’s women’s lacrosse alumni game. SU’s lacrosse fought the neck and neck match against these former SU students who once represented their team. Ending the first period, the SU Alumni were up by one goal with a score of 4-3. 

Anticipation was high as the audience watched each team slowly score one goal after the other, wondering who was going to come out victorious. When the buzz rang out, concluding halftime, our current lacrosse team took back the match from their predecessors by 1 goal with a final score of 8-7. 

However, this match was so much more than a simple quick scrimmage, according to Sky George, a former SU lacrosse player and current part time lacrosse coach at Southwestern, “I had a really good time. It’s just good to see that the program is still in good hands and that they are able to carry on the legacy. They beat us by one, so they’ve got to be doing something right!” 

The alumni aren’t the only ones who had a good time that bright and sunny morning. When asked if she had fun playing with alumni, Hope Culberson, a junior and one of the defensive players, “Most of them I knew from my first couple of years here, but it was fun seeing them again! I hadn’t seen them in a long time, even though they live in the area. Naturally, there is some pressure to live up to expectations when playing against people who have had more experience than you.” When asked if she had been nervous about the alumni game, Hope replied, “Not exactly? They were surprisingly still in shape! I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to have to work for it’.” 

This alumni game brought out a competitive fire of everyone on the field, giving the team the motivation to be at their best for their upcoming season.