Although it’s early in the season for the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams, both teams have made it a goal to create a positive environment and win as many games as possible. 

The men’s lacrosse team currently is 3-2 on the season, coming off of their win against Kalamazoo on March 18. The women’s team is sitting at 2-2 after their loss against Concordia College on the same day. All four of their games have gone down until the final minute. 

The men’s and women’s teams recognize that there are many things both teams need to work on for improvement, but they recognize the strengths they’ve built. 

One of those strengths is the effort that is put in on an everyday basis despite having a smaller team compared to their competition. 

“Our team isn’t huge, and it’s also not super small, so you have that diverse background from everybody,” Junior men’s lacrosse member Elijah Graesser said. 

This season on the women’s team, there are five returning players and nine new players. 

Because of all the new players, the women’s team is still learning how to play as a team. 

However, that hasn’t stopped them from having success on the field along with building close friendships. 

Creating a fun and safe environment to help each member of the team has been instrumental in the women’s lacrosse team’s success. 

“So that would be a lot of open communication with each other, which I feel like we all do, we all get along really well. So we all know each other’s strengths, weaknesses, and we know how to lift each other up if someone’s feeling down,” Claire Kim, senior and co-captain of the women’s lacrosse team, said. 

Even when they aren’t practicing, that doesn’t stop either team from finding the time to spend time with each other. 

Junior Paige Breslin is one of the walk-ons to this year’s lacrosse team and is also a part of the women’s varsity golf team at Augustana. 

“I feel really close with them. I think there’s about like 13 or 14 of us, but I feel like that definitely helps with the atmosphere. I feel like we’re all very close because of it,” Breslin said. 

Whenever both teams have a home game, they always are in the crowd to cheer on each other which has helped to create a positive atmosphere for everyone. 

Both teams feel that it’s too early to judge for them if they’ve hit their stride, as they have run into outside factors such as other obligations that can’t be missed such as club meetings or other sports. Another factor that goes into the decision is injuries. The men’s team has a few injured players, resulting in players having to play positions out of their comfort zone. 

“But I think once we have everyone and we’re all back from that, I think if we really put our mind to it, we can really be pretty good because we have some really talented guys. And I think we can go far with everyone we have,” said Graesser. 

However, both teams are staying positive and believe that they can reach their goals as a team. Despite having a strong desire to win, both teams are enjoying their time as student athletes. 

“I think being a student athlete is a great experience. It really does push you sometimes there are times you’re like, why do I do this, but like, when you’re on the field, you remember for sure, when you’re playing, you’re like, I love this game. Still love what I do,” said Graesser. 

Being on one of the athletics teams at Augustana has given many people the chance to learn more about themselves on and off the field. 

“Lacrosse has taught me so much about responsibility and accountability and how to be a better team player. It’s so bittersweet. It sucks. Like, I love it. I love the sport, and I love the people so much. And I’m really honored to have the position that I do. I want people to be able to see me as a person that they can look up to. So I think about that every day,” Kim said.