Freshman midfielder Casey Roberts has had a breakout season in her first with Ohio State, staring in all 13 games already this season. Credit: Zachary Rilley | Photo Editor
Making an immediate impact on a college sports team is by no means easy, but freshman midfielder Casey Roberts can check that off her list.
Roberts has started in all 13 games for Ohio State and proven her intricate role on the roster — notching 14 goals and four assists — ranking third on the team in points. Roberts said she wasn’t expecting to be so involved as a freshman but has enjoyed every minute of it.
“I wasn’t expecting to even play when I got here because I know it’s difficult as a freshman, but it has been awesome so far,” Roberts said. “The team and coaches are great and have always had my back. They have taught me so much already, and it’s been so fun to be a part of it this season.”
Coming from Parkland, Florida, Roberts is a fourth-generation Buckeye. Roberts said she grew up coming to football games since she was 4 months old, and it has always been a dream of hers to play at Ohio State.
“My grandpa played baseball here and when he passed away, coming back to Columbus made me feel like I was always with him,” Roberts said. “The only thing on my mind as I grew up was to come play lacrosse here.”
Roberts fell in love with the game at a young age thanks to her next-door neighbor who played lacrosse at Syracuse. Steve Bettinger was a part of the 1993 Syracuse men’s lacrosse team and helped the Orange win the national championship.
Roberts said she grew up playing basketball in her front yard, and lacrosse is not very popular in South Florida. So without Bettinger, Roberts said she would have never gotten introduced to the game.
“[Bettinger] would always talk to my dad and I, saying how fun and similar lacrosse is to basketball,” Roberts said. “My dad and I never knew what it was, and then he slowly started me off with ground balls and simple stuff like that. I just fell in love with it and then joined a local recreational league.”
Roberts notched one of her first milestones as a Buckeye Feb. 28 — scoring her first hat trick in a 13-12 overtime win against Cincinnati.
Her success didn’t go unnoticed, especially by senior attack and captain Nicole Ferrara. Ferrara said she had her eye on Roberts since the beginning of the year, and felt she was going to make a difference on the team.
“Casey coming out in fall ball, I knew she was going to be something special,” Ferrara said. “She fits in really nicely with two senior midfielders that are really experienced, and you can’t even tell she’s a freshman. We love having her.”
Roberts hasn’t been alone. After the win against the Bearcats, head coach Amy Bokker said Ohio State’s underclassmen have flashed promise in the seasons to come.
“I was really proud of our younger players,” Bokker said. “I think we had three freshmen on the board in the first quarter, so that is something to be really proud of. We just need to get them that experience and continue to build their confidence.”
Junior defender Sarah Johnson as well as graduate defender and captain Ava Keethler have taken Roberts under their wing. Roberts said they help her a lot with zone and man-to-man defense.
“Our slide packages [on defense] are very difficult, and I was struggling with that a lot at first, but they sit through and watch film with me all the time,” Roberts said. “Sarah Johnson specifically walks me through it, even during the game since I’m always on her side of the field.”
The transition to college lacrosse has been different from Roberts’ past experiences, but she said the knowledge she’s gained thus far has helped her rapid improvement.
Roberts said patience and hard work are things she learned immediately, along with the challenges of conditioning and workouts in the weight room.
“It’s very demanding, especially being a freshman and a student-athlete,” Roberts said. “We learn so much about time management and to just always work hard and fight through adversity.”
