Few people know what it is like to be a transfer student. One day, you’re familiar with your surroundings, and the next, you’re at an entirely new school. For some, it can feel like leaving your identity behind. You have to meet new people, explore new places, and build a life in an environment that is completely unfamiliar to you.
Savannah Sannes has been through this experience. The California native moved halfway across the country to play lacrosse at Elmhurst University in Illinois. Throughout her two years at the college, she would play the sport she had loved since high school in the rain, snow, and even sleet; the weather was starkly different from the sunny West Coast where she grew up.
“I wanted to go as far as humanly possible from home because I was still 17 at the time,” Sannes said.
But it wasn’t the harsh Illinois winters that brought her to The Valley, well, maybe a little. At Elmhurst, she actually formed a tight-knit group with her teammates, which made her time in the Midwest enjoyable. The problem was that her passion for lacrosse didn’t shine as bright as it used to. Coaching troubles on the team and other factors contributed to that dimness, but in the end, Elmhurst just didn’t feel like home.
So Sannes headed off to Tempe, ready for a fresh start and to close that chapter on her lacrosse career. She grew up competitive, and the thought of not playing the sport when she felt she had more to give didn’t sit right with her. However, she also believed it was time to hang up her gear.
“Once I transferred to [Arizona State University] at that time, I said I’m not going to do lacrosse…that was done,” Sannes said.
There is a funny thing called fate and right place, right time. When Sannes arrived at ASU, she learned the women’s club lacrosse team was looking for a goalie. Given this coincidence, she filled out the player interest form and did the only thing she could until she got a response: wait.
So Sannes waited and waited throughout the summer. The new school year at ASU was about to start, and she hadn’t heard anything. Her mom insisted she bring her goalie gear just in case, and that was when she got a text from the club’s president about the team’s info meeting.
Sannes was cautious about meeting new teammates because of her experiences at Elmhurst. But once she got to know them, she knew this was where she belonged.
“It was kind of the dream team because all the girls played with each other [before],” Sannes said. “It was great.”
The feeling of home, the sense of being accepted, she finally found it. It wasn’t the easiest journey, but it was necessary for ASU’s club lacrosse team to find its missing piece in Sannes.
Everything just clicked. The team’s chemistry was impeccable, and most importantly, Sannes felt appreciated. At first, it was weird when parents came up to her to thank her for being part of the team. It was even stranger when her parents heard that from her teammates’ parents, too.
“Usually, even in hockey, you praise your goalie, and I love that,” Sannes said. “ At Elmhurst, it wasn’t ever like that. It was just so weird.”
Now, it’s her senior season. She is valued, she is on a team that supports her, and she couldn’t ask for anything more. While this year may be full of lasts for Sannes, like a last first practice or a last first game of the season, it’s only fitting to think about why it’s so hard to say goodbye to a sport she has made her personality for so long.
“This is my last time I’m going to be playing,” Sannes said. “It’s so weird because even though I started lacrosse only as a freshman in high school, I can’t remember not having lacrosse.”
Lacrosse became Sannes’ home and the heart of her college experience. In her final season, she knows she’s leaving behind more than a sport, but carrying with her everything it gave her.
