On Sept. 15, junior Sol Ortiz DeRosa announced her commitment to the University of Pennsylvania for Division I Women’s Lacrosse.

For DeRosa, playing lacrosse started within the family.

“My older sister played lacrosse, and she inspired me to try it out,” DeRosa said.

Since then, DeRosa has played for Lexington High School and multiple other club teams. The recruiting process, she said, was demanding but rewarding. 

“The summer before junior year is when I did most of my recruiting,” DeRosa explained. “You have to reach out to coaches, go to prospect ID clinics, and play in a bunch of tournaments with your club team.”

Her connection with UPenn started through Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA), a lacrosse recruiting platform where college coaches can view athletic profiles of high schoolers. 

“The first time UPenn saw me was through IWLCA. Then, throughout the summer and my other tournaments, they kept looking at my profile and the videos I had uploaded,” DeRosa said. 

Soon after, UPenn reached out to DeRosa to invite her on an official visit to the school campus. 

“On the visit, I met the team and saw the facilities—it was a really great experience, and I loved it there,” DeRosa said. “After I got home, they kept in touch and then called me later to ask me to commit to UPenn.”

For DeRosa, the choice was obvious: she committed on the spot.

“I was so overwhelmed—I literally started crying. It was super emotional. Especially at Lexington, not many people commit to lacrosse at a school that big,” DeRosa said. 

DeRosa has learned a lot from the challenges she faced throughout her journey. 

“It’s hard to keep a positive mentality, especially if there’s a school you really like but they’re not interested in you. You have to keep your head up because things probably won’t always go the way you want, but it’s so important to enjoy your sport,” DeRosa said. 

While she still has two seasons of lacrosse left in high school, DeRosa is looking forward to excelling at the collegiate level.

”I am super excited to become a stronger player and get to know my teammates and coaches. The lacrosse program does a lot outside of just sports; it also focuses on leadership and community service. I’m really excited to be part of that and be in such a strong community,” DeRosa said.