Student Athlete Spotlight: Emma Legacy

McDaniel College two-sport athlete Emma Legacy describes her journey playing two sports as “stressful, but successful at the same time.” Legacy, a senior, plays on the women’s field hockey and lacrosse teams and is a captain for her field hockey team this fall.

The senior two-sport athlete was initially only recruited to play lacrosse at McDaniel. Still, the field hockey coach at the time had scouted Legacy in high school, and Legacy decided to seek out the idea of being a fall and spring athlete by emailing the coach. and it paid off for Legacy and her field hockey team, as she was a key contributor on the field.

Legacy is no stranger to the sports she plays, having played each since she was four years old. The skills that Legacy has now developed from what she learned early on in her playing days, she said. 

“Starting the [sport] early helped me improve my skills,” Legacy said, “which allowed her to be the player that I am today.”

Legacy plays the midfield position in each of her sports, where she has had tremendous success. 

Up to this point in her collegiate field hockey career, Legacy has four goals and five assists, totaling 13 points, and on the lacrosse field, her success is no short of fantastic.

As a member of the lacrosse team, Legacy has netted 19 goals for the Green Terror while assisting four goals, for a total of 23 points, with her senior season yet to be played.

Team culture is one of the most significant components of any sports team at any level. Legacy said the team culture for field hockey is much different than that of the lacrosse culture, as Legacy “lives with her teammates, and she knew them coming in,” she said. “For lacrosse, it was difficult because I didn’t know anybody, so I needed to make all new friends.”

Now that Legacy has built relationships with her teammates on her teams, the team cultures are “awesome,” she said.

Legacy said the 2023 women’s lacrosse season was “good” and that “I think we had some really strong moments,” Legacy said. The senior midfielder said the team's culture was strong, citing that there are improvements to be made, too.

This field hockey season, Legacy said the team culture is strong and that she and her teammates “stick with each other,” she said. ‘The record doesn’t reflect that, but I think we are doing our best.”

When she leaves the team, she wants her legacy to be remembered as giving 100% on the field, “no matter how I am feeling or what’s going on,” the senior said. Off the field, she wants to be remembered as a “positive role model for the rest of her teammates.”