Charlie Skora.
Jaclyn Schlanser crosses the field with the ball in her crosse during a game against Brighton. April 21, 2025.
Scoring six goals in one of Plymouth’s games this year, Jaclyn Schlanser has been playing lacrosse ever since she was young. Her lacrosse skills shine on the field for both the Wildcats and the Triumph Lacrosse Club. One of Schlanser’s most memorable moments of her lacrosse journey was winning a Park rival game against Salem her freshman year. She hopes to replicate that success going forward. The Perspective sat down with Schlanser to discuss her experiences with the team and her hopes for next season.
Molly Okon: When did you start playing lacrosse?
Jaclyn Schlanser: I started playing when I was really young. My mom grew up in Maryland, so she was a coach when I was like two years old. I’ve started around probably like five, I’d say.
MO: What inspired you to start playing lacrosse?
JS: My mom. Just watching her coach and stuff got me into the sport, and she was already kind of planning on putting me into it at a young age anyway.
MO: What position do you play?
JS: For the high school, I played MIDI (midfield), so I’m running the whole field. And then for my club team, I play defense.
MO: What are your goals for this season? And how close are you to achieving them?
JS: For the beginning of the season, I would have said Park Champs, but we got kind of robbed in our game against Salem. So I think my goal for the rest of the season is to beat Canton and for as a team, just to keep improving.
MO: Tell me about your favorite Park rival game. What made it so special?
JS: My favorite Park rivalry was probably my freshman year. We had the Park tournament and we played Salem. That’s when they still had Mileena [Cotter]. So it was a really high-paced game, and we ended up winning the Park champs tournament, which was nice.
MO: How have you coaches helped you over the course of the season so far?
JS: We have our new coach, Coach Rooney, and then the JV coach is actually my mom [Megan Schlanser], so I have her there. And Rooney’s really good at the strategic aspect of lacrosse, so I think he’s really helped our girls understand more about the support, which is helpful.
MO: How do you get your mind into a calm headspace before a game?
JS: I listen to music in my car on the way there, and not your usual hype music. I listen to kind of sad songs. And then I make sure to fuel my body and drink a lot of water the day of the game so that I already kind of know I’m prepared in that aspect.
MO: Do you plan on continuing lacrosse in the future?
JS: Probably not on a scholarship in college, but I might do club teams.
MO: What has made this season different from previous seasons?
JS: Previous seasons, we’ve had a lot of girls with prior experience, but we got a big influx of juniors last year, so a lots of our varsity team is girls who have only been playing for a year or two years, so it’s been kind of nice to see them grow, because you see them grow a lot faster in those first few years as well.
MO: What advice would you give to someone who is thinking about joining the lacrosse team?
JS: I would say, ‘Just do it.’ I think, not even just at Plymouth, all three schools are super welcoming, and it’s such an easy sport to pick up. You come in with most girls never playing before, so it’s really nice.