By: Ryan Sosic '19
BEREA, Ohio- A little over a month after the Baldwin Wallace University women's lacrosse season ended on May 2, senior two-time All-Ohio Athletic Conference midfielder Megan Patrick (Ravenna/Kent Roosevelt) wanted to add a little wrinkle to her typical offseason regiment. This new wrinkle took her more than 4,000 miles across the North Atlantic.
The early weeks of a typical off-season would entail sprints, agility drills and weightlifting three times a week given to the student-athletes by second-year head coach Nicholle St. Pierre. This offseason was a little different for the senior.
Patrick was given the opportunity to participate in the Lacrosse Prague Cup after she learned from one of her friends that the program needed more players for this summer's tournament. The opportunity took her all the way to Berlin, Germany and Prague, Czech Republic from June 17-26. Throughout the nine days, Patrick and her team, Team America, played a total of seven games against opponents from all different countries across the globe.
Team America finished 3-3-1, with their wins coming against Berlin, London and Hong Kong. They lost to the Czech U-19, the Czech National Team and New England. Their lone tie came against Austria.
Patrick found herself in some unfamiliar waters while playing her sport internationally.
"They're different. The field is different. They have a bigger field so we have a 12-meter and 8-meter mark, they have a 10-meter and 15-meter. A lot wider, gives a lot more space. They play with one less player so it's six versus six," said Patrick.
Additionally, the whole make-up of her team also created some issues because of the short amount of time allotted to prepare for the tournament.
"The biggest thing was that we completely came from different places. Different ages, different colleges," said Patrick. "We had Division I players through Division III, even girls who tried out for professional teams. Never playing together before to playing against national teams that are always together is challenging but rewarding." Some of her teammates came from some of the top programs in the nation, including the likes of University of Maryland and Winthrop University (S.C.).
This whole experience was eye-opening for Patrick, stating that "it showed that I am able to play with some of the best lacrosse players in the entire world."
Throughout the tournament, Patrick said she played pretty well. In total, she registered four goals and played on the defensive end very strong.
Other than playing, Patrick was able to take in some site seeing around some regions that she otherwise wouldn't have ever been able to take in. She toured the entire city of Prague and participated in a three-hour walking tour of Berlin in her free time.
In her first three seasons, Patrick has appeared in 49 games for the Yellow Jackets, registering 75 goals, dishing out 16 assists and picking up 140 ground balls. She has been named an All-OAC selection during her sophomore and junior seasons.
As she heads into her fourth season in the Brown and Gold, the senior believes this experience overseas will have an impact on her play and her leadership.
"I hope to step up more vocally," said Patrick. "I am more of a show-by-example leader so I think that's an area I can improve. I hope to make more of an impact on the offensive side. We have a lot of freshman so we will be young, but they have showed a bunch of potential. This year it will be a lot better all-around field."