Six Degrees of Maher
Saratoga Catholic soccer star, Lauren Maher, ready to join RPI’s track team
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY » Saratoga Catholic’s senior soccer standout, Lauren Maher, had set an ambitious goal for her final year as a Saint.
At smaller schools, you occasionally see student-athletes participate in two sports in the same season. Mayer’s goal was to participate in two sports during every season.
“I actually was going for six sports this year. I did soccer and cross country in the fall, bowling and basketball in the winter, and track and softball was my plan for the spring,” Maher said.
She continued, speaking about how much accomplishing the feat would have meant to her.
“It was a personal achievement that I really wanted to hit, so it’s unfortunate that corona ended that. I played softball previously in middle school and I always really liked it. I didn’t have enough time for it as I got older, but I wanted to come back to it for my senior year for one last season. I was really happy that I did as much as I did.”
When Maher began her college search, the senior who scored 23 goals this season, was set on playing soccer at the next level.
“Soccer was really important to me when I first started looking at colleges. That was what I used to narrow down my choices,” she said.
After she committed
to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, she knew that her soccer journey would be coming to an end.
“Unfortunately I didn’t have the opportunity to play soccer at RPI. I did have one or two other schools that were looking at me for soccer, but I decided that my education had to come first, since they had my major and was the best fit academically. It was really hard to have to say goodbye to it, but I think it’s the right choice for me, at the end of the day.”
She was still determined to participate in a sport while in college, although she won’t be on as many teams as she was while in high school.
“I knew that I still wanted to play a sport, so I talked to the track coach. I’m really happy that I’m running track now. I think that I’m going to have a lot of fun and that it was a good decision. It’s nice that it’s two seasons long.”
The women’s track and field season typically begins in December, but that will likely come into question after Tuesday’s decision by RPI to cancel all of their fall sport seasons.
“So far I haven’t been affected, but they haven’t made any decisions yet on winter sports. I’m happy that we’re still on right now and hoping that track doesn’t get cancelled.”
Had Maher chosen soccer, she would be in a much different position heading into her freshman year, although something she is certain about is her major.
“I will be majoring in chemical engineering. My dad an engineer himself and he always talked to me about his work. He’s a nuclear engineer and works with electric now. I always thought what he did was interesting and throughout school I always had a love for math and science, especially chemistry. When you combine all of that together, I figured that chemical engineering was the best thing to go with.”
She elaborated on her decision to choose RPI.
“Originally, I wasn’t looking for schools close to home. As I looked more into RPI, I realized the benefits of being close to home, as well as the benefits of the school as a whole. I’ve always gone to a small school, even in elementary school. I’ve always loved the small community atmosphere. I think it’s going to be a great fit for me,” she said.
“Academically it’s going to be tough, but I like a challenge when it comes to school.”
Maher is coming off of her senior soccer season where she won an All-State award, as well as Wasaren League and Section 2 honors.
“Winning our sectional game this year against Heatly was my favorite moment. It was huge for us as a team and it was so fun to see all the hard work we’ve put in to pay off in a win.”