Robert VanHoy '16 Recruiting Profile

Lacrosse to most is a ball, sticks, sweat, blood, and bruises, but to me it is a way to push myself mentally and physically and I love it. I believe there is no better feeling then putting everything you have into something and then getting a reward like a win in return. Losing, of course, is not as fun but it is a part of the process of sports and life that make you really cherish the wins. In every game lost, there are still plays that are won. Being a team sport you need a collective effort out of your whole team to win. This is another part of lacrosse that makes it such a wonderful thing for me. Not only do you as a player get to experience a win or loss but your teammates also get to share that feeling with you.

My love for lacrosse started my sophomore year of high school.  I am an athlete so I played football and basketball my freshman year.  I knew nothing about lacrosse but had a few friends wanting me to join. When I didn't make the second cut for the JV basketball team, I agreed. Prior to the first day of practice my knowledge and experience of lacrosse was very limited. Needless to say, I had no idea what I was doing.  I had little time with the stick and could not catch or pass.  My coach pulled me aside and quickly taught me the basics then asked why I had decided to play attack rather then defense. He asked this because I was obviously built like a defensemen. My reply was “because I didn't have one of those long sticks.”  He took care of my problem and got me a long pole.  I liked it much more,  it fit me much better, and I started playing the position that I love so much today.

The love I have for the sport was solidified at our first tournament in Arkansas. The first game was when I really found out why I loved pushing myself so hard at sports. I played the whole game until I hurt my ankle. I had to come off the field to get my ankle wrapped by one of the parents. I don’t think I will ever forget that moment when he said, “Let’s get you wrapped up quick because we need you out there.” It wasn't that much but it made me look around. I saw it in the faces of my teammates on the sidelines. They wanted me back out there, they needed me back out there. At that moment, I realized that I had become a crucial part of the team. This moment was especially huge for me because not making the basketball team had made me feel like I just wasn't good enough to play any sport. This love for being needed and the love I already had to push myself grew larger with time and still grows today. It is what allowed me to dress and practice with varsity by the end of my first year.

My junior year of lacrosse was even better then my sophomore year. This was the year I developed a better understanding of the game which sprouted my love for the overall sport. I played summer ball where I learned the ins and outs. Over the summer, I realized no where else and no other sport had ever made me feel so satisfied. When I play I feel like everything is in my control but at the same time I feel I'm at a casino and nothing is in my control. It’s an adrenaline rush that I can get no where else.  It’s what calms me on a bad day and what keeps me up at night in anticipation.  Over that summer,  I became a defensive leader. This proved to be another thing I love about the sport. As I said I like how somethings are in your control, and a big thing I like to control is the defense. For me it’s like a chess board. You must know how to react when your opponent moves, where the pieces go, where those pieces are strongest, and who to place them against.  After summer league ended,  I was determined and confident I could get a starting role on varsity and I did. This season will always be in my memory because not only was it a great season for the lacrosse team overall, it was a season where a team just didn't come together but a family. We were good and went undefeated. It was time for playoffs and down to the last four teams. The whole team played with more heart then I had ever seen but we still lost. In the end we lost our first game but we built a family in the process.

Life is short and it’s not often that people find such a fulfilling passion and love for something. For me that is lacrosse - the sport that I can push myself in, be needed, build a family, and find more comfort in then anywhere else. I believe that it is the only sport I can do this in. Others may find it in other sports but for me the sport itself has an atmosphere that draws me in and is constantly making me love it more and more. Lacrosse has given me so much and I only want to continue being a part of it. The idea of having to stop playing lacrosse is terrible. I would hate to end a sport that I love so much. I dream to play in college so I continue the dream I am in right now.

Sincerely,

Paul VanHoy

903-372-5697

903-372-4937
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