Lady Flames lacrosse player thankful for five years of faith and friendships at Liberty

As she and her teammates prepare for ASUN Tournament play in Kennesaw, Ga., beginning Thursday, Liberty University women’s lacrosse fifth-year defender Sarah Steenson is thankful to play the sport she loves at the highest collegiate level — a dream that looked out of reach to her in high school.

“As I’m looking back on my career, I’m seeing all the amazing things that I’ve gained and the amazing relationships that I’ve built through lacrosse here at Liberty, and it truly all started with a leap of faith,” she said.

After her junior year of high school, the Northern Virginia native still didn’t have any NCAA Division I offers and had nearly given up hope on the years-long pursuit.

“I was at that point in my lacrosse career where I realized although I love playing lacrosse, it might be time to start looking at what I can do besides lacrosse and maybe stop trying to get into a school with it, because I wasn’t getting recruited,” she said.

After visiting a small school not far from Liberty’s campus the summer before her senior year, Steenson said that she vividly remembers hitting rock bottom.

“I remember leaving the school crying, thinking that God might be telling me to leave lacrosse behind and focus on doing what I want to do for my future and my career and academics,” she said. “That was another struggle, because in my mind, athletics and lacrosse, and sports were my route, and at that point in my life, I really put all of my identity within athletics.”

But Steenson’s father encouraged his determined daughter to stay the course. That same trip, the two of them decided to visit Liberty before driving home.

“At first, we didn’t look at it for lacrosse but just as a school,” she said. “I had gone from crying about my future the day before to the next day, after staying overnight in the area and taking a tour, falling in love. I had not had that experience at any other college or university I had visited.”

Although she was not expecting coaching interest to come out of it, Steenson signed up for a Lady Flames lacrosse camp later that summer. After an outstanding camp performance, to her surprise, the coaching staff offered her a walk-on spot that they would hold for her while she played her senior year of high school lacrosse.

“I was overjoyed and said, ‘Yes, I’d absolutely love to,’” she said.

Steenson said while this exciting surprise served as a powerful reminder of the Lord’s faithfulness, it also sharpened her outlook on her future.

“It gave me the edge I needed going into my career here (at Liberty). I began asking myself, ‘What can I give to this school and team?’” she said.

Steenson graduated from Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries, Va., in 2016 as one of its finest athletes, having participated in lacrosse, field hockey, indoor track, and cheerleading while also playing club lacrosse for Future Elite Lacrosse and the Richmond Strikers Lacrosse Club.

After arriving at Liberty, she brought her game to the next level, starting 10 games and competing in all 19 as a freshman while causing 16 turnovers. Over her impressive five-year run with the Lady Flames, Steenson has been recognized three times as an ASUN Defensive Player of the Week honoree, is ranked third in program history in caused turnovers (103), was an ASUN All-Conference second team honoree in 2019, named to the ASUN Women’s Lacrosse Preseason All-Conference Team this spring, and is currently ranked No. 13 in the nation in caused turnovers per game (2.19).

In December of 2019, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in sport management and will graduate with a master’s degree in communication this month while she continues to work as a graduate assistant for the Club Sports marketing and promotions department throughout the summer. She intends to pursue a career in marketing and public relations within the sports and entertainment industries.

But as Steenson and her teammates prepare to play in the ASUN Championship quarterfinals at 4 p.m., she said she is cherishing every moment with the friends she loves playing alongside.

“There’s so many things I’ve learned from this team and from these girls,” she said. “Not a lot of organizations have that, and I think it’s just a true beauty stemming from our faith that we are the way we are. … I think it’s based on our spiritual aspect and the virtues we live by.”

After having last spring’s season cut short due to COVID-19, Steenson said being in the position to win the ASUN Championship in her fifth year is a blessing.

“This weekend, this moment is what I thought of when I was thinking through whether I should come back for my fifth year,” she said. “I immediately said yes because I knew we weren’t done and we didn’t win that championship. I’m just so excited to try and do that with this team and with these girls.”