May Athlete of the Month: Evi Quast
Photos by Roberta Pratt.
Congrats to May's female athlete of the month, Evasia Quast! Quast is currently a senior here at Hamilton. She's on the varsity girls Menomonee Falls-Sussex-Germantown lacrosse team. She's an attacker and has won Attack MVP her freshman year and the Junior Scholar Athletic and Academic Award her junior year.
Teammate Emma Suneja (senior) states, “Evi is one of our greatest leaders and one of my best friends. Her dedication to the team is unmatched and she shows up to every game and practice with a focused attitude. When it comes to leading the team she is exactly the type of leader this team needs. On the field, the best word to describe her would be smart. She is incredibly smart and spatially aware on the field. She slows down the play and is able to get everyone to work as a team. While our coaches are new this year, Evi has continuously stepped up these past two years to handle fundraising events and team bondings. She has poured her heart and soul into this team and while we are both captains, I aspire to be the leader she is.”
Congrats to Quast! Read more to hear from her:
How long have you played lacrosse for and why do you play?
I've played lacrosse for five years, and I play because I loved this sport the second I stepped on the field. I had a few friends urge me to play in 8th grade. They were looking for more players with no experience needed, and I really wanted to try a sport. My best friend at the time and I joined together and we both fell in love. I also play because I love the connections I make with my team and with other teams. I get to become friends with all sorts of people, and if I didn't have lacrosse, I wouldn't have met some of my good friends.
Who is your athlete role model and why?
I don't really have an athlete role model if I'm being honest. I watch sports but only really football, soccer, and hockey, and I usually just watch it for the love of the game, not an individual person.
What is your main goal this season?
My main goal this season was to increase my accuracy with my shots, and it did increase this year as I had more goals than last year and fewer shots. I also wanted to help out younger girls who were brand new to the team and sport so that the team would grow for the years to come, even though I would be long gone.
What are your future plans involving lacrosse?
I might join a club for lacrosse, and I also thought about joining a lacrosse team as an assistant coach or stats taker, more so a position where I could still be involved with the sport but off the field.
Do you play any other sports or participate in any other activities?
I did swim the last two years. Both sports are so different but each have their different focuses. I will say swimming played a big role in helping my endurance for lacrosse and controlling my breathing when running, and lacrosse helped me improve my strength for swimming. Both sports I highly recommend; they are so fun and you meet so many new people with co-op teams, and I happen to think practices can be very fun for both sports. Obviously there are some difficult practices and when you're sore and tired it can get difficult, but at the end of the day I would still do it all over again.
Besides lacrosse, what are some of your other hobbies?
I don't have too many interesting hobbies, but on my off season when I have more time, I enjoy working out, walking (I love taking long walks so so much), going shopping, traveling, painting, knitting, baking, etc. That's all I really do; otherwise I just hang out with friends and grab food or go somewhere fun.
What are your pre-game rituals?
I don't really have any intense or weird pre-game rituals. I just say a quick prayer and pray no one on either team gets injured and that we simply play a good game. Also if I notice some people are anxious, I'll go over and try to calm them and let them know that at the end of the day we all get to go home and it's nothing to stress about.
Do you have any teammates, coaches, parents, or other people in your life that have helped as an athlete?
All of the coaches I've had this year have very much helped me out and pushed me to be the best I can be. My swim coach Gina Martino, my lacrosse coaches Rhys Gibbs, Kate Ciriacks, and Hayley Schwartz have all played crucial roles in pushing me to become a stronger athlete and a more confident player. All of the girls I swam with and played with have impacted me throughout the years (if I could name every single one I would). All of them are fantastic players and swimmers and I considered it a big privilege that I got to compete with them over the years.
