By Isabella Darcy
Managing Editor
Junior nursing major Marissa Lucca joined the College’s lacrosse team to compete for a national championship title. When she officially stepped onto the varsity squad as a freshman, Lucca and her teammates were excited for a promising season.
“That was supposed to be the year everyone was saying we could win the national championship,” Lucca told The Signal.
Before she could even play in her first game, a high ankle sprain sidelined Lucca for her entire freshman year season. But after months of recovery, she returned to the field last spring to become one of the Lions’ most valuable players — even winning Rookie of the Year in the New Jersey Athletic Conference.
“Marissa worked diligently to recover from her injury and made a phenomenal impact for our team last year,” Head Lacrosse Coach Sharon Pfluger told The Signal.
Besides receiving Rookie of the Year in the NJAC last season, Lucca also earned Second Team Regional All-American honors and NJAC All-Academic honors. According to her coaches and teammates, Lucca is equally hard working off the field in her academics and on the field playing lacrosse.
“We were not surprised at Marissa’s success last season,” said Pfluger. “We knew she had immense potential to excel on the collegiate level.”
The lacrosse coaching staff were excited for Lucca when she was finally healthy enough to play again, as was she.
Returning to play took day after day of working with trainers, icing her leg and building strength through physical therapy to heal the injury she acquired during a preseason drill. Lucca still remembers the moment it happened: she and a teammate jumped to compete for an airborne ball, and when Lucca hit the ground, her ankle rolled.
“Immediately I could not walk,” Lucca said. “I tried to get up, but it was an excruciating amount of pain.”
Although Lucca did not get any playing time while she was recovering from the ankle injury, she still received a plethora of support from her teammates, coaches and family. Her parents even attended all her games despite their daughter being off the field.
“Having their support was really sweet,” Lucca said.
By the time the Lions were wrapping up their season, the resilient freshman was able to participate in some practices and warmup drills. It was only a matter of time before she was playing in her collegiate debut.
“You have to have the positive mindset that it's going to be better eventually,” Lucca said. “And that it's going to be worth it when you finally can return to play, and be able to step on the field again.”
During the opening game of her sophomore year season, Lucca proved to be an offensive force by scoring seven goals — the first of the 61 she scored for the Lions last spring.
“She is a very valuable player and an extreme asset to our team,” said attack player Ally Tobler, a graduate secondary special education and English major. “We both play the same spot on different sides and I would not be the same player without her skills.”
Tobler and Lucca grew up together in Washington Township, New Jersey, where lacrosse gained popularity just over a decade ago, according to Lucca. It was then, when she was in third grade, that Lucca’s lacrosse journey began.
“All of my close friends in elementary school, we all started playing together and it really became one of my favorite sports ever,” Lucca said. “I look forward to every practice, every day, just coming home from clinical and going right to practice.”
Lucca still finds some of her closest friends on the field. She described the Lions as a team full of positive team chemistry and a sense of camaraderie. According to Tobler, Lucca plays a key role in fostering that atmosphere.
“Marissa is a very caring teammate and is always thinking about the well-being of our team,” said Tobler. “She is extremely humble, even though she is one of the best players on our team. She shows extreme compassion for everyone in her life.”
Lucca and the rest of the Lions are currently gearing up for their upcoming season, which kicks off on Saturday, March 1, with a matchup against Ursinus College.
The College’s program is the most successful in NCAA Division III women’s lacrosse history, having won 12 national championship titles since 1985. If the Lions win the national championship this year, it would mark their first title since 2006.
Lucca is excited to once again compete for the title and face tough competition this coming season — especially from teams the Lions lost to last year.
“I'm looking forward to playing top ten teams and seeing how we can battle through adversity with each other,” Lucca said. “It’s getting revenge, going back and playing them again.”
At each game, she will have her teammates, coaches and family cheering her on.
