The whistle blows and the atmosphere becomes tense as the opposing team pushes a fast-break; Zoie Reynolds ’26 is faced by two attackers, barreling toward her. Springing into action, she closes the angle with a perfectly timed slide. Before the lead attacker can even look at the cage, Reynolds executes a clean body check, dislodging the ball. Reynolds started playing lacrosse in third grade after being introduced to the sport by her older sister, Skai Reynolds ’21.
“I was playing basketball, then I realized it really wasn’t the sport for me, and my older sister played lacrosse,” said Reynolds. Although she began as an offensive player, she found a better way to help her team as she progressed in her career.
“At first, I liked [scoring] goals,” said Reynolds. “Then, I switched to defense, and [it] connected with me in a way because I just didn’t really like scoring that much. I really liked helping my other teammates.”
Serving as a captain of the team for her second year, Reynolds’ ability to connect with her teammates is critical and being able to see the game more clearly as a defender helps her understand how to help them to the best of her ability.
“[My focus is] guiding the team in games, always lifting up our teammates ... and just saying, ‘I’m here for you, everybody’s here for you,’” said Reynolds.
Reynolds’s leadership has been noticed by teammates, who have felt supported by her; midfielder Leah Bornstein ’26 emphasizes the energy she brings to the team.
“She’s a great person on and off the field,” said Bornstein. “She’s always picking everyone up if they’re feeling down, and ... she just brings love, enthusiasm, and leadership toward you.”
Similarly, Charles Gallagher, one of Reynolds’s coaches, not only acknowledges her ability to dictate play in the backline, highlighting her strong ability to organize the team, but also emphasizes Reynolds’s dedication to the team.
“She communicates really well with the senior class ... and the underclassmen when it comes to defense,” said Gallagher. “She’s a great motivator, and she’s a total team player. [Reynolds] is not concerned about the accolades — she just wants to go out there and play.”
Outside of her leadership, Reynolds has established herself as an instrumental part of the team’s success; despite not receiving the most headlines for her defensive work, her teammates and coaches still recognize her effort.
“[The coaches] like to put her on the best offensive player from the other team because she’s that talented,” said Gallagher. “She can control those players and limit what they can do as an explosive offensive player, so ... the day before a game, we tell [Reynolds]: ‘Hey, Zoie, listen, you’re going to need to lock down the best player.’ And when that best player doesn’t have a great game, everybody knows why.”
Furthermore, Bornstein echoes this sentiment while also pointing out that Reynolds’s work ethic further establishes her on the field.
“She’s a really hard worker, and she doesn’t get recognized enough for it,” said Bornstein. In her final season, Reynolds still has plans to improve the team. Specifically, she aims to improve camaraderie off the field to produce stronger performances during games.
“[I am working on] creating more team bonding for the team because when I was a freshman or sophomore, [the team] didn’t have a lot of bonding,” said Reynolds.
Although she may currently be a focal point of the team at PHS, Reynolds intends to continue her lacrosse career at the D1 level at Boston University. In fact, she has already began to plan her college education around the sport.
“I already know what I’m going to do, like leaving class early, balancing classes, and also connecting [lacrosse] back to how it would help me in my future,” said Reynolds.
After witnessing her development over the last four years, Gallagher is optimistic for her future and has high expectations for career at BU.
“In all honesty, she’s going to go down as probably one of the best defenders we’ve had at PHS lacrosse in a very, very long time,” said Gallagher. “Anybody that can go and play that sport in college at the D1 level is a really exceptional player, and she definitely is one of those player