Rebecca Lane shines for Australian and St. Joe’s lacrosse teams

St. Joe’s women’s lacrosse junior midfielder Rebecca Lane was selected to the 2017 Australian National Team last summer where she competed against the sport’s brightest talents.

Throughout her time on the team, Lane represented Australia in both the Women’s World Cup, held in Surrey, England, and the International World Games, hosted by Wroclaw, Poland.

Lane has not only had a decorated career abroad; she’s also been able to show off her talents at St. Joe’s. Most notably, she was the 2016 Atlantic-10 Rookie of the Year and a 2017 A-10 Second team selection. Her latest National Team accomplishments add to an already impressive resume.  The accomplishments and subsequent recognition gave her extra confidence, especially headed into a fresh collegiate season.

“Having the experience of playing against players that I couldn’t have even imagined playing against has given me a lot of confidence,” Lane said. “I think it will translate well into next season. I have more of a competitive drive because I know I can play against the best.”

Women’s lacrosse head coach Alex Kahoe said that Lane’s international experience, especially at the World Cup level, has done a great deal for her advancement as a player.

“It’s the highest level that there is,” Kahoe said. “She understands what it takes to compete at the highest level and be successful.”

Lane said college lacrosse is completely different than anything she’s experienced before. Practice is every day as opposed to a few times a week. Lane enjoys how she’s able to constantly be around her teammates at St. Joe’s.

“Being around my teammates all the time has been special,” Lane said. “We all have the same drive and goals as players. It’s a great community to be around.”

Kahoe has seen Lane grow as a leader through her international play. She commented on the fact that playing with thirty-year-old women as a teenager really helped to develop her skills.

“Becca has played against extremely talented competition,” Kahoe said. “Her experiences have helped shape her into the leader she is today.”

Lane said that playing lacrosse for St. Joe’s has a different feel than playing for the Australian National Team. She attributed this to lacrosse’s popularity in the United States.

“Playing for St. Joe’s, an American team, is very much so a battle for pride,” Lane said. “It’s something I can really feel when I walk onto Sweeney Field.”

The locker room presence at St. Joe’s is completely different than on the Australian National Team. Lane said that she really felt the nerves playing for Australia, but St. Joe’s is more relaxed in that aspect.

“At St. Joe’s, it’s very light in the locker room,” Lane said. “It’s cool to see what teammates do in their pregame routine. It’s all about getting hype no matter what you do.”

Lane is already extremely accomplished in her lacrosse career. However, she’s still hungry to get better. Kahoe believes that constantly improving is one of Lane’s innate qualities.

“She never settles,” Kahoe said. “She’s someone who wants to be the best player she can be while also helping those around her do the same. She goes above and beyond in and out of practice to be the best leader possible.”

Lane wants to explore all kinds of opportunities in the lacrosse world after graduating. She said playing professionally and coaching afterwards is an appealing option.

“I would love to try out for a pro league and see if I would get drafted,” Lane said. “It would be a great experience. I also enjoy the idea of possibly becoming a coach. It would be a great next step after four years of college lacrosse.”

Expectations are high this season. Both Lane and Kahoe said that they expect an A-10 championship. Lane also talked about team goals on a more technical standpoint.

“As a team, we want to be super aggressive and gritty on the field,” Lane said. “We’re going to play our style of lacrosse and put in place everything we’ve been working on.”

Lane and the Hawks suffered a road loss in their season opener against Georgetown University on Feb. 10. The team returns  to Sweeney Field to take on Central Connecticut State University on Feb. 17.