But once again something went wrong with her initial plan.
Three credits, that is all Melissa Moran needed to be a D1 lacrosse athlete. Most people know that three credits is only one class, so it does not sound too bad, but things are not always as easy as they seem. When Syracuse native, Melissa, transferred to Duquesne in the spring of 2017, she thought all her dreams of becoming a D1 athlete were coming true, until she found out she had to red shirt for the spring season due to being three credits short of her class year.
Transferring once is already extremely hard, so doing this process twice and not being able to relieve stress in the one way she knew how too was severely challenging. In the fall of 2016, after two years of playing lacrosse at Monroe Community College in Rochester, New York, Melissa went on to attend the University of Pittsburgh. There, she planned on studying communications and playing on the Pitt Women’s Club Lacrosse team. She wanted to continue playing lacrosse but at a less serious level, so she thought. After a few practices, she knew she was better than playing with girls who did not take the game seriously at all. After only one semester at Pitt, she decided to transfer again, two miles down the road, to Duquesne University to pursue a degree in Sports Information and Media and play lacrosse at a D1 level.
Her first semester at Duquesne was one the hardest times in her life. She could not play lacrosse, she was still living over by Pitt after having a bad experience there and she was starting from square one now. Her mom, Tina Moran, agreed that it was a very hard transition for Melissa. She said, “Melissa was extremely excited and confident to finally become a D1 athlete. Her confidence at the time was through the roof. When she met with her advisor and was told she could not play and would need to red shirt that first season her entire demeanor changed and her confidence level hit rock bottom and you could tell she felt inadequate and insecure.”
After red shirting during the 2017 lacrosse season, Melissa thought now playing D1 lacrosse was actually going to happen this time, but once again something went wrong with her initial plan. As it turns out, she actually had nine credits to complete before being able to play now. So, Melissa enrolled for three online summer classes to fulfill this requirement.
Summers for college students can be hectic, between summer classes, having a job, and making time to see friends and Melissa experienced this first-hand. Toward the end of summer, Melissa had a huge, life changing decision to make about her future with Duquesne Lacrosse. In July, she had to weigh out the pros and cons of continuing her lacrosse career. After weeks of thinking and being stressed out about this situation, Melissa finally decided to end her lacrosse playing career.
There were a few main main reasons why Melissa decided to quit playing and focus on other aspects of her life. After being asked about her feelings between spring and fall of 2017, Melissa said, “I entered the summer with knots in my stomach. The team unfortunately wasn’t overly accepting of me and I constantly felt like I was walking on eggshells. It was either complete these courses and go back to a team that made you feel anxious (in a bad way) or bow out. In turn, I did enroll in courses, however did not meet the needed credits. I think subconsciously, I didn’t try my hardest in one course knowing that my reasoning for not playing would fall on the credits instead of me “quitting.” Another main reason was there were many things she was not able to do because of playing lacrosse for the past 14 years. For example, she had always wanted to try snowboarding but was never able to so because of the high risk of injury. She also was never able to go on spring break due that it is during lacrosse season. Now, all of this possible.
At the end of all this commotion, when Melissa spoke with her advisor in fall when returning to school and they were going over classes, it was found she could have actually played when she first transferred in, but someone misread her transcript. Melissa and her parents were devastated about this situation. Melissa said, “If I didn’t have to redshirt and had a real chance to step up for Duquesne I feel as though things would be very different today.”
As fall of 2017 rolled around, Melissa was lost and confused with no lacrosse in her life. There was no more early mornings, lifting, or training she was required to go to. During this semester, Mark Kuxzinski, who is Director of Finance for the Pittsburgh Penguins and President of the Board of Athletics for Chartiers Valley, reached out to then- Head Coach of the Duquesne Women’s Lacrosse team, Lisa Evans, asking if any of her players had free time to coach a local youth team for the next spring. Since it was lacrosse season and all the women on her team were busy, Lisa recommended Melissa to Mark.
Instead of being bitter about the past, Melissa decided to give back to the sport that brought her so much joy in her life and accept the position as head coach of the U-12 Chartiers Valley Youth Girls. At first, she was nervous and anxious about this new endeavor in her life, but knew she was up for the challenge. Her team ended up going 14-3 on the season. Even though the 2X National Champion and one time state champion, could no longer be a player for a winning team, she sure could coach one. After such a successful season of coaching, Melissa ended up winning the Coach of the Year Award. Currently, Melissa is still coaching the U-12’s lacrosse team at Chartiers Valley and her team is currently 5-0. She hopes to win Coach the Year again.
Along with coaching at Chartiers Valley, Melissa also works some Duquesne lacrosse games now. She said “I am currently able to attend Duquesne games. Something a year ago I would have laughed at if someone asked me to go to.”
The saying “There is always light at the end of the tunnel” is an accurate description of how Melissa’s life has been for the past three years. She went from being a National Champion to playing for a club team, to having to red shirt and give up everything and now is a successful coach herself. It is a true definition of a roller coaster ride of emotions. Her mom said “Best part of this whole rollercoaster of emotion is that she grew up quickly and is now using her lax talent to help young children pursue their dreams. Extremely proud of her!!!”
Melissa hopes to keep coaching youth and maybe even high school lacrosse one day. “I like actually being able to teach kids new skills and help them improve their game everyday.” Whether it be on or off the field, Melissa always seems to find a way to win.
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