Photo by: Jimmy Baumgartner
“When you get a second chance, there is no holding back. You play every play like it could be your last,” says Pioneer senior lacrosse player Kristie Leggio.
After a two year hiatus from the game, Leggio has come to Denver and quickly became the Pioneers’ most prolific scorer in school history in just a season and a half. Beginning her collegiate career at the University of Maryland, Leggio took two years off before entering the Pioneer line up and setting a school record with 104 points last season and a single game record with 13 points in a game against Harvard last week.
“You realize as a senior that you are done after this,” said Leggio of her final season in college lacrosse. “This is all you have and you want to make the most of it.”
Being from a lacrosse hotbed in Bay Shore, N.Y., one would think that Leggio was born with a stick in her hand. However, Leggio was 12 years old when she decided to begin playing the sport that would eventually lead to her being recognized as one of the top collegiate players 12 years later.
“I didn’t think that I would play at first, because I was really into soccer,” said Leggio of her decision to join lacrosse. “All my friends were playing, so I thought I’d try.”
Leggio would begin playing while in seventh grade on the Bay Shore High School junior varsity team, before being moved to the varsity team during her eighth grade season.
She credits the quick rise in ability to her high school’s head coach.
“The coach of the varsity team in my hometown was a good family friend,” said Leggio. “She helped me out a lot and pulled me up to varsity really early, when I was in eighth grade. Also, our assistant coach Laura Schuman [at Bay Shore H.S.] played for the University of Maryland and on the US national team. She was a huge influence as well.”
With the help of her coaches, Leggio became a four-year starter at Bay Shore, while earning her team’s Most Valuable Player award as a junior and senior.
Her stellar play at Bay Shore earned Leggio the chance to play collegiate lacrosse in one of the best women’s programs.
“Every lacrosse player’s dream back then was to play for Maryland,” said Leggio. “They were the best.”
Leggio’s time spent at Maryland proved to be valuable to her development as a player.
“I was coached by and played with the best in the country,” said Leggio. “I changed my whole game. My perspective on the field changed.”
In her two seasons at Maryland, Leggio recorded 48 goals in just 42 games, showing that she truly belonged among the game’s elite.
However, despite her on the field accomplishments, Leggio struggled in the classroom and with adjusting to college life.
“Academic wise, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do,” Leggio said. “I hated school. I was very confused. I think that I was getting depressed and couldn’t handle school anymore.”
So, after only two seasons at Maryland, Leggio left school.
“When I left school I wasn’t sure what I really wanted to do,” said Leggio. “I just thought I’d get a job and start working for a while. But when your making $10 an hour and realize that you aren’t going anywhere with it, I figured that I needed to go back to school.”
Leggio spent two years back home in Bay Shore, helping out coaching with her old team, before deciding to give college another try.
“The two years, I think, were necessary. I went to a community college and got my grades up,” said Leggio.
Then, Leggio received a phone call from former Maryland assistant coaches Caty Reese and Jen Adams, who were, at the time, on the DU coaching staff. Reese offered Leggio the opportunity to come to the Mile High City and once again play lacrosse. Leggio jumped at the opportunity.
“Cathy, Jen and I had a good relationship when we were at Maryland,” said Leggio of her former coaches. “They helped me out a lot [in my transition]. I think that they cared for me, and it just really helped.”
Though one might think that it would be a struggle for a player to take two years off from their sport and return at the same high level, Leggio seemed to have no on field struggles in her first year as a Pioneer.
“The hardest part was being so much older than everybody else,” joked Leggio, who is now 24 years old. “We had such a young team; I came in with 11 freshmen. It was also hard getting used to being back in college.”
If Leggio had a hard adjustment fitting in with her new teammates, it wasn’t at all evident from her play.
Leggio scored 67 goals and dished out 37 assists in only 20 games last season while starting in every game.
“Having two years off, you realize how much you miss playing,” said Leggio of her revitalized passion for the game as a Pioneer.
Now that she is back playing, Leggio is doing everything that she can to help her team to their first ever NCAA tournament appearance.
So far this season, Leggio has led the Pioneers to a 10-2 start and a No. 15 national ranking. While doing so, she has been tearing apart the DU record books, with 42 goals and 70 points through the first 12 games, including a remarkable 13 points in a win over Harvard under two weeks ago.
The 13-point game is the most ever by a Pioneer, and a record that will likely stand for a long time.
“I think that [the record] is exciting because your name is going to be remembered here,” said Leggio of her 13 point outburst. “I don’t really think about scoring while I am on the field and don’t think about how many points I have. But it’s defiantly great to get that recognition.”
Though Leggio has earned a number of personal accolades, including Conference Player of the Year a season ago, her only ambitions this season are team oriented.
“I think that it is about the team and our goal is to get to the NCAA, no matter how many goals that I score,” said Leggio. “We have a whole pack of girls that can score, so it’s not about just one person.”
Though it may be a tall order for the Pioneers to earn a birth into the 16-team field, there is one thing for sure: Leggio won’t be holding anything back.
