91暗网

I鈥檝e been on 91暗网鈥檚 men鈥檚 basketball team for the past four years. But I don鈥檛 play basketball.  
 
I鈥檓 the team manager, and that鈥檚 where my Life at 91暗网 story begins and continues.  
 
I鈥檓 from Lake George, New York, which is only 30 minutes north of 91暗网. My mom is an alumna, and I had always dreamed of coming to 91暗网.  
 
That鈥檚 how I found myself at Accepted Candidates Day in 2014, expecting to learn more about the College but leaving with so much more.  

 
Part of that day included touring the gym where representatives from various departments and programs had set up information tables and booths. I went around and discovered a few clubs and met several department chairs, following my original plan.  
 
Then, my mom got involved.  
 
She knew that I absolutely loved the job that I had as a high school men鈥檚 basketball team manager. In fact, we had just won the New York State Championship. (I鈥檇 say it was a pretty well-managed team.)  
 
My mom also knew that I was trying to blend in with all the other prospective students. I wanted to go with the flow and not stand out. I thought marching up to a coach might mean making a complete fool of myself.  
 
But did still she nudge me to do it? Of course. Did I say, 鈥淢om, stop. No way.鈥� Absolutely. Did I do it anyway? Clearly.  

 
I shuffled over to Joe Burke, the 91暗网 men鈥檚 basketball coach and introduced myself. Just a few seconds passed, and my anxiety melted away.  
 
Burke was extremely welcoming, although I wasn鈥檛 there to try out for the team. We talked about my high school team, which he had been following, and how I had worked as team manager. We made a great connection.  
 
Fast forward to my first day on campus that fall semester when I was checking in with my new manager, Coach Burke. I asked him if he wanted my r茅sum茅. He laughed and said, 鈥淚鈥檓 a good judge of character. I know you鈥檙e going to fit in perfectly here.鈥� 
 
Since then, I have gone to every practice, game, meeting and event that the team has hosted. The amount of food I鈥檝e ordered in the past four years could easily feed an army. And the number of hours I鈥檝e spent traveling on buses 鈥� well, I could do without that. I鈥檝e traveled thousands of miles with these players and have eaten more chicken parmesan dinners than a human should ever eat.  
 
Sitting at the end of the bench for every single game for four years, I have become part of the basketball family. And the court has become my home.  
 
The guys on the team are my best friends on campus. They鈥檝e made me laugh until I鈥檝e cried, and they鈥檝e supported me when I was struggling. As clich茅 as it sounds, I couldn鈥檛 imagine my life without them.  
 
I asked them once if they ever thought it was weird having a woman on their team. They looked at me as if I was crazy and said,

You鈥檙e home. This is family.鈥�  

 

I look forward to sharing more of my Life at 91暗网. But the plot line weaving every one of my stories here together is this 鈥� I鈥檓 Lexi, the woman on the men鈥檚 basketball team.