FIELD OF DREAMS: Eva Petrone brings the ball upfield for the Fairfield University women’s lacrosse team as it battled Maryland in the first round of the NCAA tournament this May. Former Princeton High standout Petrone had three draw controls in the game as Fairfield fell 16-7. Defensive midfielder Petrone piled up 13 ground balls, 16 caused turnovers, and 26 draw controls on the season to help the Stags win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) tournament and go 11-8. (Photo provided by Eva Petrone)
By Bill Alden
Eva Petrone’s college lacrosse career was nearly derailed before it even started.
In the summer of 2020 before Petrone, a former Princeton High standout who was heading to Fairfield University to join its women’s lax team that fall, was injured in a serous car accident.
“In June, I was on Route 1; I was in my little Toyota Takoma and was in the jug handle going over into West Windsor at Fisher Place,” said Petrone. “This 18-wheeler ran three red lights and t-boned me. I hurt my back really bad and hurt my hand a bit at my wrist.”
Petrone recovered enough to participate in Fairfield’s fall ball season but ended up taking a redshirt that year. Back at full speed for the 2021-22 school year, Petrone got on the field that spring.
“It was my first time playing in competitive games since junior year in high school,” said Petrone. “You have to get the shakes out, you feel young when you are playing with all of these older girls. I ended up getting most of my playing time in the conference semifinals and championship that year. Your adrenaline goes so high, you feel like a little kid again. You just feel that you legs can’t stop and your brain is going a million miles an hour.”
Petrone helped the Stags win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) tournament that season and ended up falling to Syracuse in the NCAA tournament in a game played at Princeton University. As a junior in 2023, defensive midfielder Petrone got into a handful of games as Fairfield won another MAAC title. Last year, Petrone made 12 appearances off the bench and got 10 ground balls, six caused turnovers and nine draw controls.
This spring, playing as a grad student while she got a MBA, Petrone started all 19 games, getting 13 ground balls, 16 caused turnovers and 26 draw controls to help the Stags win the MAAC tournament and go 11-8.
Heading into this spring, Petrone was determined to get the most out of her final campaign.
“I was definitely not satisfied, I wasn’t fulfilled,” said Petrone. “I am competitive, I needed to end on a high note and I just felt like this was the perfect chance for me when the fifth year came along. I just knew I wanted to leave it all out on the field.”
As a battle-tested veteran, Petrone was looking to assume a bigger leadership role this spring.
“We had lost so many of the upperclassmen from last year,” said Petrone. “We had a big senior class and a big fifth year class last year so I was one of the oldest on the field and oldest on the team. I had to step up into a big leadership position, I think I did OK. I started every game, it was my time. There was definitely a lot more pressure on me to compete and win games.”
In that role, two younger players that Petrone looked to help were former Princeton Day School stars Paige Gardner and Tessa Caputo.
“It was really special playing with Paige and Tessa,” said Petrone. “We are from rivalry high schools but once you get to college, it really all fades out. It is cool to share the same roots. We always joke around about that.”
Petrone took special pride in her work on the draw circle.
“I started on the circle,” said Petrone, noting that Brynn Donnelly on the draw and star midfielder Haley Burns were other key members of that unit. “The draw is a big component of the game. That was my thing, I loved that being in on that and getting possession. I was on the defensive side. It is a very intense position.”
A 10-7 loss to Mount St. Mary’s in early April helped ratchet up the intensity for the Stags as they responded to that setback by going on a six-game winning streak.
“That was a little bit of a wakeup call for us; if we wanted to win the championship, we were going to need to be better than that and more consistent with our play,” said Petrone. “We fought hard, we practiced hard. Everyone was really fully invested. I felt like a very strong connection with this team; of all the teams I have been on, this one was probably the closest.”
Rolling into the MAAC tournament semi against Siena, Petrone had one draw control as Fairfield pulled out a 16-12 win.
“I was face-guarding their star attacker, just locking her off; it was on and off face gaurd to just playing defense,” said Petrone. “I was really revved up for that game. I felt pretty confident the whole time. It is never enough goals, you always want to get more of a lead. Everyone was fired up too. Watching our attackers move the ball, work the offense and put the ball in the back of the net was a great feeling.”
The Stags produced a superb defensive effort in the conference final as they defeated Iona 12-7.
“It was really exciting, our goalie (Keira Furey) played really well,” said Petrone. “Our defense really brought it all together, we were jelling. We play in a zone defense so we all have to be on the same page and moving the same way. We were confident with the ball in transition. You just have to want it more in those kind of games and we did.”
For Petrone, that triumph put the ups and downs she has experienced in perspective.
“After that final whistle blew and we had won, it was like everything just paid off,” said Petrone. “In my fifth year, it just felt like everything came full circle. After losing the championship my senior year, that win meant more than I could ever put into words, It was like all of the work that I put in, not just that season but my whole life finally paid off. I felt complete in a way. Like I achieved what I have always dreamed of — being a champion.”
Although Petrone’s lax career ended with a 16-7 loss to Maryland in the first round of the NCAA tournament, she relished getting that opportunity.
“In the beginning of the fall, my goal was get to the NCAA tournament,” said Petrone, noting that she has been buoyed over the years by the support of her family. “Obviously with our record, we weren’t going to have a great first round matchup. It was cool to be in Maryland, the home of lacrosse and play one last game with my best friends. It was a good time. We lost by nine points but it was a heartwarming moment saying hi to my parents after the game. It was emotional, it was the end of an era.”
Reflecting on that era, Petrone believes it changed her life. “I think playing lacrosse at Fairfield and at the Division I level was just a dream come true,” said Petrone, who is now working in sales for TTI, a company that produces power tools, equipment and appliances. “It flew by. My final year made me realize how much the sport shaped me as an athlete but more importantly as a person all around. I will definitely miss the competition. You make a lot of relationships and I will miss the relationships with my teammates and coaches.”