Ithaca’s Jamie Lasda closes out stellar career at Ohio State

Jamie Lasda is one of many Ithaca High School alums who have gone on to play college lacrosse. A smaller portion stood out at the Division I level, and Lasda is no exception.

Last month, Lasda finished her fourth and final season playing for the Ohio State women’s lacrosse team. The senior was a force to be reckoned with in attack, ending her career with 107 points. Lasda pointed to her growing confidence throughout the years that made her such a threat.

“The goals didn’t start to pick up as much until sophomore year,” Lasda said. “I think freshman year [with] a new place, new team, new coaches is just still building that confidence and belief that I was able to do that. So I think once that started to build [my] sophomore year and I had the trust of my coaches and teammates, I felt comfortable being a little more assertive on the offensive end.”

Lasda is far from a one-dimensional player. She also excelled in the draw controls, winning 112 of them over the course of her career. That tally puts her in ninth place in program history. Lasda has certainly perfected her craft in such an important part of the game.

“I had a lot of technical teaching when I got to Ohio State and learned much more about the drawn advocates,” Lasda said. “I think it’s mostly [about having] quick hands, being able to beat your opponent just with quickness. Another big part of it is communicating with the two girls in the circle. I think that went up a lot, which helped me big time.”

This season was also significant for Lasda, as she was named the team captain. It felt even more special given that her teammates nominated and voted for her to be a leader of a Division I program.

“Knowing that I had their trust and they saw me as a leader, I think at first it took a moment to adjust and realize I was capable and it was justified,” Lasda said. “I never really viewed myself as a very vocal leader at least, so I think it was an adjustment. Once I started to take on that role more, it was pretty cool and I think it taught me a lot about myself and how to be a leader.”

Lasda also reflected on why she decided to take her talents to a school of such grandeur when it comes to sports.

“16-year-old me loved the big school, big football, and focus on athletics,” Lasda said. “At the time, it was just really cool to a young player. I think I lucked out because it turned out I loved the city aspect of it being in Columbus. It just really felt like athletics was its own community and well-supported. I also got really lucky because the facilities and everything drew me in, but everything else turned out to be a perfect fit.”

Lasda is not the only Little Red girls lacrosse alum who has starred at the Division I level this season. Shea Baker helped Boston College win their second straight ACC championship, Zoe Congdon guided Binghamton to its first-ever America East title, and Alecia Nicholas is the starting goalkeeper for a North Carolina team that is two years removed from a national championship. Lasda played alongside all three players well before teaming up with them at IHS.

“That group of girls played with each other really since we’re in elementary school,” Lasda said. “We had some great parents and coaches that kept us together and we traveled as a team to these national tournaments. It’s just really great. When you’re playing with each other year-round, I think it really improved all of our games to the next level. We got lucky with that being set up since we were little kids.”

With the Little Red, Lasda garnered four Section IV All-Star honors while helping the Little Red win back-to-back Class A titles in 2018 and 2019. The biggest thing she learned that carried over 450 miles to Columbus was simple: being a good teammate.

“I think our team was so close,” Lasda said. “[It’s] not always just being nice, but being able to have those tough conversations when someone’s not putting all they have or something like that. It definitely helped when I got here with those team dynamics. There were 40 other girls who all came from different places and different perspectives, so just being able to manage that definitely helped me.”

While Lasda’s playing career is over at Ohio State, her time with the program is still ongoing. Lasda is planning on being the graduate assistant coach for the Buckeyes next year.

“The four years go so fast,” Lasda said. “If I can stay a part of it—even if it’s in another form—and stick with my teammates and my coaches and be able to help them in some manner, I’m going to take the opportunity.”