Two more players on the Republic girls lacrosse team have signed to play at Drury University. Allison Skidmore and Ella Young are both seniors who will both join the Panthers next year.
Skidmore will join her brother, Austin, at Drury, where he plays for the men’s lacrosse team. She said being around the sport when she was younger led her to trying out lacrosse as a player. She’s in her fourth year as a player.
“I hated it at first, actually. I didn’t want to play… then I tried it once, and I kind of fell in love with it,” Skidmore said. “I love that (lacrosse is) not talked about. It’s different than any other sport we’ve got going on at the high school, so I like that about it.”
Skidmore said her brother’s attendance at Drury helped draw her the program, and so did the presence of other former Republic players in the women’s program there.
“I didn’t want to go too far away, plus we’ve got a really great community of girls that go here, and everyone was super-welcoming and sweet. It’s the team bonds you already have, I feel like those are really special.”
Young is beginning her second season on the lacrosse team, and she jokes about her family’s initial reaction to her first scrimmage after only four days of practice. “My parents told me I should quit because they were not following me around for a season of that,” she laughed. “But I said, ‘Give me a little bit more time.’ And right after pre-season, everything started clicking and I started figuring everything out.”
Young said Drury Coach Robert Brucken’s interest in the Republic lacrosse team helped spark her interest, and a campus visit clinched her decision.
“I fell in love with the campus and how involved everybody was,” she said. “I felt like I would be watched over here — like everybody really seemed to care. I’ve met almost all the girls and they’re so nice, and I love Coach Brucken and everything that he stands for.”
There will be four former Republic players on the Drury squad next year. Skidmore and Young will join current Drury players Anna Davidson and Arwen Ezell-McKinney.