For the past four years, it’s been hard to watch a Northwestern lacrosse game without eyes darting to No. 3.
Agile, strong and in tune with every inch of the field, Shannon Smith paced the Wildcats to three national championships in her time at Lakeside Field. Becoming just the third ‘Cat to earn lacrosse’s Tewaaraton Trophy in 2011, Smith rose to prominence as one of the nation’s top scorers and most vocal leaders.
Last June, Smith traded pads and a stick for a cap and gown, taking a program-high 254 goals with her as she walked in graduation procession.
That No. 3 jersey, however, was left behind.
Now, No. 3 bounces around the team’s practice facility at Trienens Hall, scrapping for playing time and eager to carve a niche in the roster. It’s worn by midfielder Christina Esposito, one of 11 freshman Wildcats. A product of Smith’s West Babylon High School in New York, Esposito is aware of the mammoth expectations that come with joining the national champions.
“In high school, you were the only one working super hard and getting to every ground ball," she said. "Now, you have 11 other girls around you working just as hard. You have to bring your style of play up that much more.”
Esposito worked with Smith one-on-one in stick drills and faceguarded team captain Erin Fitzgerald in ninth grade. Esposito comes in with a leg up on the rest of the newcomers. Yet even for a two-time high school All-American, the pressure to keep pushing never relents.
"Shannon’s style of play was always aggressive and hard, that’s exactly how [the entire freshman class] works. Hard and aggressive, 24/7,” she said.
Esposito’s credentialed background is thrown out the window in Evanston, where every member of the lacrosse team touts a prestigious résumé.
"You think that you have one highlight, but here, everyone has that exact same quality,” said freshman midfielder Lauren Murray. "You just have to work that much harder.”
Murray, originally recruited as a midfielder, started in both of Northwestern’s preliminary games in California. Recording three ground balls and one forced turnover against USC, Murray’s already received glowing praise from her teammates.
“She’s picked up on a lot of things really well,” said senior captain and Tewaaraton preseason candidate Taylor Thornton. “People tend to push defense off to the side ... but if you can stop someone one-on-one, I think that’s one of the biggest assets you can bring to the team.”
Freshmen typically work together in the “night shift,” an extra set of wall-ball and reps on goal. With speed, strategy and aggression augmented at the college level, Murray points to Esposito and fellow freshman Kaleigh Craig as players who continue to challenge her.
Craig notched her first career goal against USC, a bullet from eight meters out. After recovering from two knee surgeries in high school, Craig’s story is just one glimpse of promise shown by the freshman class.
"It was a lot of work to go through, and now getting here is a relief," Craig said. "I’m trying to prove myself, doing everything I can in practice and by myself to be a challenge to my teammates.”
Still, most freshman won’t log any minutes, regardless of their work in practice and beyond. Attackers Hadley Brooke and Maggie Fobare have been shelved from action with injuries, while Thornton and the rest of the upperclassmen have a stranglehold on playing time.
Yet even preseason experiences have shaped the new 'Cats. In January friendlies against Team USA and Team England, the freshmen were shoved side-by-side with the best players on the planet.
"As a freshman playing with the best girls in the world, you realize how good the team is and how good you are as an individual,” Esposito said. “You’re playing [against Team USA and Team England], and you’re like, 'Wow, I can play defense on this girl.' It gives you that much more confidence.”
It’s that confidence that can propel these first-years to uphold Northwestern’s winning ways. Physical ability is essential, but knowing you belong at the highest level is what truly shapes a freshman season.
“They should realize that they can be a threat," Thornton said. "Just because you’re a freshman doesn’t mean you have to sit on the sidelines or defer to the top players. You can score and make other teams worry about you.”
As Craig has already shown, opposing teams will have to respect the new Wildcats. On a team stacked with national champions and outstanding athletes, adding an additional young dimension makes No. 1 Northwestern that much more dangerous.
The growing pains are inevitable, the freshmen note. But with confidence and ability already in place, it’s only a matter of time before we see a Shannon Smith-esque leader emerge.
“You’re going from the top of the totem pole to the bottom,” Esposito said. “It’s just a matter of working your way back up.”