Girls’ lacrosse was introduced at FHN during Briana Schmidt’s sophomore year. Being more of a fan of team sports as opposed to individual sports, Schmidt thought she might as well give the new sport on the block a shot. Fast forward to her senior year, and Schmidt has emerged as one of the top scorers in the area and is the first Knight to ever sign to play lacrosse in college.

“It means a lot to me to be the first at something,” Schmidt said. “When I come back to the school and watch lacrosse games I can be around the athletes and the coaches can be like ‘This is the girl who really made an impact on our program,’ and I think that’s pretty cool.”

Schmidt will attend Indiana Institute of Technology starting this fall. She came to the decision back in November and December, which was soon after she visited the school. After the visit, Schmidt knew that this was her number-one choice and just needed to figure out if she was ready to go that far (389.3 miles) from home. She would then “get over it” and officially chose the Indiana Institute of Technology as her future four year home. One of the leading factors behind this decision was the people at the school.

“As soon as I stepped on [the campus], everyone was so friendly and the majority of students who go there are athletes, so I felt surrounded by people that I could really relate to,” Schmidt said.

Before she heads to Indiana, Schmidt will wrap up her senior season on the lacrosse team in the coming month and will get the chance to reflect on her high school playing career at FHN. Being a member of the varsity team and playing the sport of lacrosse over the last three years has had a significant impact on not just Briana Schmidt the player, but also the person and the student.

“As a student, it’s made me think more of what grades I need, to get more scholarships for college and help out, and make a good impact on college coaches,” Schmidt said. “As an athlete, it’s definitely improved my overall fitness level and makes me more competitive in all sports I play. As a person, it’s increased my confidence and my leadership abilities.”

Getting ready to take such a big step to the college level has created a mix of emotions for Schmidt. The next stage in her career contains aspects that she is both looking forward to embracing and also slightly nervous about. Either way, Schmidt is prepared to take on whatever is needed in the coming months to put her on, or close to, the same level of the athletes she’ll be taking the field with.

“It’s a combination of being excited and nervous,” Schmidt said. “There’s a little bit of nerves, but I’m more excited than anything. I’m kind of scared that I won’t be up at the pace of everybody, but this summer I’ll definitely work on it to a point where I will be.”