Girls Lacrosse Co-Captain Carly Hopkins ’24 leads Girls Lacrosse by creating a supportive environment for her teammates. She applauds each players’ successes and encourages her teammates to do the same. Both on and off the field, Hopkins creates a space for her teammates to grow and thrive.
Hopkins noted that a supportive team can rely on each other on the field, which in turn translates into wins. She aims to create an atmosphere that encourages and pushes for teammates to cheer for each other, root each other on, and find ways to grow together.
“The type of leadership I strive for as a captain is to be super inclusive and to be super positive. I want everyone to feel like they have a place on this team and I want this team to be a super positive and supportive environment where everyone is cheering for each other and everyone is celebrating each other’s success. I think that when you have a team that is super supportive it translates to being supportive on the field, and then getting those wins that we love to see,” said Hopkins.
Gracynn Hartley ’27 recognized Hopkins’ supportiveness. She shared the positive impact celebrating each other and maintaining a positive aura has had on the overall team chemistry.
“Because of Carly’s leadership, the team dynamic improves a ton because we are always celebrating our successes and creating goals we can all relate to. Some things I enjoy about her role as captain is her overall positivity. I’ve never seen her get down on herself or other people and she always has a smile on her face. I would say that Carly is a great teammate and captain. Everything she does inspires me to be better so I think she already embodies all of that positivity and inclusivity,” wrote Hartley in an email to The Phillipian.
Quiana Bell ’26 also highlighted Hopkins’ ability to create a strong team bond by encouraging her teammates to be there for each other. Bell noted her ability to balance having fun while also staying focused.
“Carly does a great job of balancing the energetic [personality] to making sure we stay on track, on topic… because of her ability to shift from being that energetic, hype, funny person to being focused, and, ‘This is what we need to work on.’ I just think that her leadership has more forced team chemistry. The way she cheers people on and shows she’s your biggest supporter, that makes all of us want to celebrate each other in the way she celebrates us,” said Bell.
Hopkins shared that her position on the field helps her carry out her team player leadership style. As an attack, she is able to assist goals, and create space for her teammates on the field.
“I would describe myself as a player who wants to see everyone else succeed. I always strive to keep my head up. I play attack, so I strive to keep my head up and see the field, make space for other players when they are open, and get as many assists as I can. I just want to support my team, as a player, and as well as a captain,” said Hopkins.
Hartley shared Hopkins’ emphasis on working together as a team on the field and off. She also noted that Hopkins gives constructive feedback to help the team improve, addressing concerns immediately as they arise.
“I’d say Carly’s biggest strength is her ability to commit to teamwork. She’s so unselfish on the field with the ball and there to uplift everyone. The number one thing I look for in a leader is the ability to communicate concerns, and she does that. When she sees something that’s going wrong, she isn’t afraid to identify it in a timeout or break at practice,” wrote Hartley in an email to The Phillipian.
Hopkins highlighted the unique relationship she has with her teammates. She noted that through cheering on the sidelines or getting excited before games, she sees the leadership she strives for and the values that she lives by reflected in her teammates.
“I see this leading with positivity reflected in my teammates definitely, especially when in hard moments of games when we’re down and we’re cheering for each other to get back up, or if someone makes a mistake and we’re just supporting each other, whether that’s screaming super loudly on the sidelines or getting super hype before games. My teammates and I are super super close, which makes it easy for us to be happy for each other, and get those wins we love to see,” said Hopkins.
Bell describes Hopkins as not only a great leader but a great friend as well. She highlighted Hopkins approachability and her ability to connect with her teammates outside of lacrosse. In practice, Hopkins is able to make practice interesting and engage teammates.
“She always looks for the fun parts of practice. She’ll make a mundane drill, something that’s exciting and new. She’ll have a conversation with everybody. I feel like whenever I’m playing defense against her, like we’re in line for a drill, I’ll always talk to her. She is just an easy person to talk to, such an easy friend to have. We’re always locker buddies, in the locker room, so it’s just a great dynamic there,” said Bell.
