Sara Pagotto: Statements from a Saints Freshman
Sara is a 2018 graduate from Vimy Lacrosse and is currently a freshman for the Limestone Saints, an NCAA DII School in North Carolina. She is majoring in athletic training and looking forward to her first upcoming season. Sara was an asset at Vimy, and to Alberta lacrosse – she played with the U19 Team Alberta field lacrosse team this past summer that won the silver national invitational medal and also played with the Junior Ladies Titans who won a provincial silver medal. Vimy was excited to chat with Sara about her experiences playing in the United States so far.
How is your freshman fall ball season going? Are you enjoying the transition from high school lacrosse to university lacrosse?
I thought the fall ball season went very well, and I felt like a learned a lot more about the position I will be playing for Limestone. I enjoyed the transition and how the level of competition is higher, but it was difficult adjusting to being a brand new person on a team where a lot of the girls already knew each other.
What is the hardest transition for you, rules-wise?
As for the new rules, the hardest adjustment in the NCAA is that when there is a foul, we do not need a whistle to begin play again. We can just grab the ball and go. This rule is hard to adjust to because in high school women’s lacrosse we had to wait for the whistle.
How is it playing on a team with your former teammates/Albertans like Britannie Ouimet and Kylie Porter?
I love playing lacrosse with them. It feels like they always have my back and I have theirs, just because we all played together and know one another pretty well at this point. Brit is a great leader, and Kylie is a good support system because she is going through the same thing as me. I am thankful to have them playing alongside me at Limestone.
How do you find time management has changed since high school?
Time management has become increasingly harder in the transition from high school to university because we have to balance academics as well as practicing and lifting. That being said, it is not impossible to balance school, lacrosse, and everything else. We have so much time in the day, the hard part is being consistently proactive, and on top of your schedule.
You are with your coaches/teammates all of the time now- do you have any advice to young players going to college next year about managing these relationships?
My biggest piece of advice for incoming freshman is that you don’t need to be hanging around your team all the time. Getting to know everyone in the first week is cool, but after that many people don’t know how to adjust to living with, taking classes with, and practicing with the same people every day. Alone time is important so that you can recharge! For incoming freshman, I would advise them to try and get a single room to give yourself space from your teammates, and ensure you’ll get alone time.
What are you most excited for in your first upcoming season? Where are you most excited to travel to?
I am excited to see how intense the games get, and play my hardest. We don’t travel too far during our season, so I’m excited to explore North Carolina!
The Vimy lacrosse family will be cheering for Sara in the upcoming season. We look forward to what she will accomplish in her NCAA career, good luck Sara!
