Alumna Jephanie Chen takes on the Women’s Lacrosse World Cup

This past summer, from July 12th to the 22nd, the tenth annual Women’s Lacrosse World Cup took place in England. Incredibly, SMIC-I alumnus Jephanie Chen (’12) was the goalie for the Chinese national team during the games.

Leading up to the cup, Jephanie learned quite a bit from the games and practices beforehand. Though she has only played lacrosse for about six years, she was excited for the new experience ahead. “[Before the game, I was] nervous, excited, not sure what the women’s lacrosse at the world level is like, [and] excited to experience World Cup [so] soon,” Jephanie remarked.

Practicing for the event was not an easy task. She lived in Arizona–thousands of miles away from her team–but she still worked extremely hard for the games, investing a large amount of time and effort. “When [the] semester ended, most players left town [and] practice fields were closed due to grass [maintenance]. It was difficult to find practice partners, fields, and communicate with team China over Wechat due to time zone differences,” Jephanie commented. But she made it work, which is an understatement, since she was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the match between China and Israel.

After putting her blood, sweat, and tears into the World Cup, Jephanie looks forward to future opportunities and competitions. Looking forward, she said she would like to better “negotiate [with] coaching, practice, and field schedules long ahead of time to guarantee high quality and consistent practices.” She hopes to continue with the sport and participate in more competitions. It may be a difficult sport, but if one “give[s] it all out, victory will come. Even if the progress or improvements seem small, with baby steps, [the] goal will be reached.”

With all of her achievements, most notably in the Lacrosse World Cup, Jephanie has brought great pride and joy to the SMIC-I community. “I couldn’t be prouder of Jephanie!” Activities Director Brian Bates, Jephanie’s friend and former-coach, exclaimed. “She’s one of the most fascinating people I’ve ever known and, while this accomplishment is truly extraordinary, it doesn’t surprise me that Jephanie achieved this because she’s just that special of a person.”

Jephanie has also accomplished quite a bit during her time at SMIC-I, being a multi-talented player. She was part of the Girls Varsity Basketball team for four years, and captain of the team for one. In addition to playing Girls Varsity Volleyball for four years, she also won the city championship twice in badminton singles.  It seems lacrosse is just one more sport she’s dominating.

The Lacrosse World Cup is definitely a new and challenging experience, and Jephanie Chen embraced it head on, working through all the obstacles in her way. The future holds much for her and we’re excited to be a part of her journey!

Photo courtesy of Lacrosse World Cup Instagram