Nicole Corriveau: A hopeful season leader
BIDDEFORD, Maine (BVM) — As the country continues to battle COVID-19, University of New England junior Nicole Corriveau remains optimistic about the future of the 2021 season.
Corriveau grew up skiing down Vermont’s mountains and playing with her sister in the backyard. Having a childhood spent mostly outside, she fell in love with the woods and the environment, leading her to have a pretty good idea for what she wants to do after college.
Along with playing for the women’s lacrosse team, Corriveau is studying environmental sciences and is a tour guide on campus.
“Obviously, I love my major, that’s why I switched to environmental science at the end of my first year. I also enjoy that my classes are so hands-on,” Corriveau said. “My avian ecology class is always worth getting up and out the door for — even if it is at 6 in the morning.
“So far, I like tour guiding, but it does get me out of my comfort zone being the center of attention and talking to new people. I’ve already given two tours to future environmental science majors, and I hoped they liked UNE!”
As a whole, the team is very hopeful that their 2021 season will take place, as they didn’t get to finish their last one due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This past Saturday, Sept. 19, the squad started socially distanced practices. While the team is on the field, they will remain 14 feet apart and in small cohorts of six or seven girls.
“I’m kind of anxious for our first socially distanced practice, mostly because I don’t know what to expect. I know we won’t be able to practice normal stuff like man to man defense,” Corriveau said prior to the first practice. “Hopefully, this means more shooting drills for me! But I know our team always makes the best out of each situation that gets thrown at us, and our practices will be a good time to work on team fitness.”
Still, nothing is set in stone for the upcoming season, but if they had to guess, they will be playing games against teams just in their conference. As frustrating as it is, they will take it one practice at a time.
As an upperclassman, many girls will be looking up to Corriveau for the next two seasons. As one of the six juniors on the team this year, she is stepping into more of a leadership role. Mainly because she is one of the four attackmen for the team, she will be seeing a lot of field time in the upcoming season.
In the 2020 season, Corriveau had a total of four goals and three assists. It doesn’t seem like a lot, but there was also only a total of four games played. Imagine what she could have done with the rest of her season. During a game against Southern Maine University, Nicole played a total of 67 minutes. It was a hard-fought game that ended in a 17-16 loss. They hope to see the Huskies on the Blue Bolt Field some point in the 2021 season for a rematch.
Prior to the 2020 season, she had a total of 11 goals and four assists. One of those goals against Southern Maine University. She took home a total of 15 points at the end of that 18-game season.
Corriveau and the rest of the women’s lacrosse team at the University of New England are looking to have a well-rounded 2021 season and are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.
