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04/18/2023 08:17 AMSome skills can translate from sport to sport due to the similarities in playing styles. For North Haven senior Aisling Pretty, she found this to be true as she provides value on both the soccer field and the lacrosse pitch for the Nighthawks.
The defender and lacrosse captain has been playing the sport since her sophomore year. She signed up to play during her freshman year; however, the Nighthawks did not have a spring season due to COVID-19. Despite missing out on her first high school season of lax, she has still been able to make the most of the last three years as a top contributor for her squad.
“I also play soccer, and my captains my freshman year were encouraging girls to play, so they inspired me to play,” says Aisling. “I play defense and also play that position in soccer, so that was a smooth transition.”
Nighthawks girls’ lacrosse Head Coach Bernard Pellegrino has seen Aisling develop into the leader of the defensive unit over the last few seasons and relies heavily on her to run the operation.
“She is the captain of our defense, she calls the defense, and we have multiple defenses that we play. I told her when we started the season, ‘You are going to call it, I have faith, you let everybody know what defense we are playing,’” says Pellegrino. “She is like a coach on the field for our defense.”
North Haven has gotten off to a rough start to the season, but that hasn’t stopped Aisling from keeping her team motivated and positive during games, no matter the score.
“I try my best to be an encouraging leader on the field, no matter what the score is. I try to keep our heads up and play strong, even though we may be losing or winning; just try to keep up the intensity,” says Aisling. “Last year, it was mainly seniors on the defense, and I was the only one that really played last year. I knew that it was my position this year to step up and lead the defense because it was all girls that were new to varsity this year.”
It is a captain’s job to not only lead their team on the field, but also off of it too. Pellegrino says Aisling checks off both boxes with her attitude and commitment to the sport.
“She is a natural leader and leads by example. She is the first one to practice every day; she is there ready to go. She was the captain of the soccer team as well, so she is a good vocal supporter,” says Pellegrino. “She is a team builder, always encouraging, leads other players to follow in her footsteps, wants her teammates to be better, and helps the team. She has a very positive approach to her leadership.”
While striving to be a positive leader both on and off the field, Aisling has helped develop a strong bond among her teammates and create a family-like atmosphere.
“I think that we have a very strong connection. It can be tough with the three different teams,” says Aisling. “We are all very friendly, kind, and like to encourage each other.”
On April 10, the Nighthawks faced the West Haven Blue Devils in a grind on the road, falling by a score of 15-14. Pellegrino notes that Aisling had a very strong defensive effort in the contest.
In addition to missing a season due to COVID-19, Aisling and her teammates have faced a challenge the last couple campaigns of not earning the record they hoped for, something she hopes to change this spring.
“The last two years for lacrosse, we have not had the best record, so our goal this year was to fix that,” says Aisling. “Our goals this year are to improve our record and make the state tournament.”
Echoing Aisling’s goal of making a state tournament run, Pellegrino has appreciated her for keeping her eyes on the prize and helping her teammates to stay focused on the ultimate goal.
“She is really encouraging our team to make the state playoffs, which is one of our goals. It would be great to see the whole team make it,” says Pellegrino. “Especially having her and the rest of our captains lead us to that achievement.”
While staying locked in on making the state tournament, Aisling also looks forward to the connections she can make this season with so many new faces on the team.
“I look forward to building new friendships this year and doing more team bonding things, as well as improving our skills on the field,” says Aisling.
After Aisling concludes her final season with the Nighthawks, she is open to playing club lacrosse at the respective university she decides to attend.