Charlett (left) and Sam Stevenson.
(For her final blog post before heading back for her sophomore season at Richmond, Sam asked that I write a story about her lacrosse relationship with her sister Charlett. — Dave Ruden)
It didn’t take Sam long during the recruiting process to decide that she wanted to continue her playing career at Richmond.
But she was not the first person in her family ready to commit.”
“When I visited I wasn’t sure what I was going to do; she decided she wanted to come before I did,” said Sam, pointing to her younger sister Charlett.
There was just one problem. Charlett was a freshman at Darien High School.
“I loved it; it is gorgeous,” Charlett said of Richmond. “Right now it is my top choice.”
If Charlett continues on her current path, it is quite possible she will follow in Sam’s footsteps.
Charlett was a captain of the Darien junior varsity team last season and is looking to play a more considerable role next spring. Toward that goal, Charlett has been spending a great deal of the summer working on her game. She has attended camps at Richmond and the University of Virginia, as well as playing for the Chargers summer program.
“She has the potential to be better than me,” Sam said. “We will see how that goes.”
Charlett, at 5-foot-9, is already the same size as her sister. She started playing lacrosse in the 5th grade, three years earlier than when Sam started.
Charlett is the middle of five children (Sam is No. 2), and said she has looked up to her older sister.
“She’s probably helped me the most with lacrosse,” Charlett said. “She just knows the game better and gives me things here and there.”
That doesn’t mean there are not periods of sibling rivalry.
“She does remind me of me a little bit,” Sam said. “She’s as aggressive as I am and as competitive. We compete about who has the better clothes. I know I do because I come home and she’s wearing half my wardrobe.”
Lacrosse has truly been a family sport: their cousin Kendall was one of the stars of the Fairfield Ludlowe team this past spring.’
While Charlett has put in many hours this summer, so has Sam, who is coming off a strong freshman year at Richmond and this season will be moving from attack to midfield. She has spent considerable time working with a trainer to get in better shape to meet the added demands of her new position.
Sam said it has been fun working with Charlett and watching her develop.
“It’s really cool and I love helping her,” Sam said.
And what would it be like to have her sister as a teammate at Richmond for her final season?
“That would be absolutely awesome,” Sam said. “That would be the perfect way to end college.”
