A missed junior lacrosse season and an uncertain summer didn’t stop Marblehead’s Elizabeth Driscoll from making her future plans, as the rising senior goalkeeper has committed to play her college lacrosse at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H. following graduation.
“I just fell in love with the campus and the coach, so it was an easy decision for me,” said Driscoll. “I talked to a couple of different schools during the recruiting process, but in the end I always came back to St. Anselm.”
“Elizabeth is an incredibly hard worker, she’s the rock of our defense and she’s earned everything she’s gotten to this point,” said Marblehead girls lacrosse coach Annie Madden. “She’s proven herself to be a great player and she’s just going to keep getting better at the next level.”
The recruiting and decision-making process was a little different than normal for Driscoll, who had to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic while trying to figure out her future plans.
“It was definitely different,” said Driscoll. “A lot of campuses were closed and it was hard to tour the schools, but luckily I was able to get in a visit to St. Anselm before all that.”
Madden sees Driscoll as only continuing to excel once she gets into a college lacrosse program.
“Her work ethic is so strong and she’s so committed, she’ll thrive in a college lacrosse environment,” Madden said of Driscoll. “I think college coaches see her potential already, and once she’s able to combine that with her work ethic she’s just going to keep getting better.”
It’s been an interesting stretch of time for Driscoll over the past several months, as she also saw her junior lacrosse season and the majority of her summer plans get canceled due to the pandemic.
“It was definitely tough to miss the season, not even just for me but also because our team is such a family and it was hard to not be able to compete with them,” said Driscoll. “But the only thing we can do is continue to work hard and prepare for next season together.”
But as things are slowly starting to return to normal, there appears to be hope on the horizon. The MIAA recently approved a new athletic calendar that would see lacrosse played from the end of April until July 3, meaning Driscoll can hopefully look forward to playing her senior season of lacrosse with the Magicians in the spring.
“We’re so excited to be able to get back and play together,” said Driscoll. “Over the past couple of months we’ve been able to meet a little bit as a team and do some play days with COVID-19 restrictions, so we’re all really looking forward to getting back.”
“I can’t wait to get back and see the fire in all these girls’ eyes,” said Madden. “After missing last season, they all realize the value of high school sports and what it means to them. So now they’re going to come back with so much enthusiasm.”
