SBHS LAX Star Ready for New Challenge

South Brunswick High School senior lacrosse star Elle Hvozdovic had her choice of any number of top colleges in which to continue her career at the collegiate level.

But when it came down to it, the Vikings standout set her sights on a unique challenge in being part of the first lacrosse team to play for Elon University. Hvozdovic signed her National Letter of Intent to Elon in late November, joining a class of freshman who will be expected to bring the program up from its infancy while competing against top level schools.

"It's definitely a special experience being part of the first team for any program. No matter what, we'll always be the first," Hvozdovic said. "It's cool that I'll be playing with the same girls every season for the next four years. It's exciting to be going up against top five teams like Duke and North Carolina. That can only make us better. If we can hang with them, by the time we're seniors we could be really good."

Hvozdovic is no stranger to playing against the best, having represented her home state in Maryland as part of the Brine All-American Classic, a tournament featuring the best lacrosse players in the country.

"I've been able to travel all over and meet tons of different coaches and players while playing in different weather scenarios," she said. "It helped me narrow down my choices to find the program that fit best for me."

Hvozdovic is coming off a season in which she scored 105 points (60 goals and 45 assists) for the Vikings. Hvozdovic now has 122 goals and 185 points for her career. For her exploits, Hvozdovic was named to the First-Team of the All-Greater Middlesex Conference as a Midfielder. She was also named to the All-Area Team and was the GMC Offensive Player of the Year.

"Elle brings a tremendous amount of lacrosse experience and leadership to the program," said SBHS Coach John Coppola. "She's been playing this game for a long time. She's played with some of the best players at the high school level. With her club experience across the country playing against top level competition in tournaments, that experience and knowledge she has of the game is key for us."

With her athletic ability and 6' height, Hvozdovic could've excelled at most sports, but she said lacrosse was a game that appealed to her very early on.

"I tried soccer and softball, but my mom had some friends who played lacrosse and wanted me to try it. I fell in love with it from the second I started," she said. "It was different and unique. Nobody I knew was involved with the sport."

But since she began playing 9-years ago, Hvozdovic said she's seen the sport's growth explode both in South Brunswick and across the U.S.

"When I started I didn't see many girls going to Division I schools from around here. There just weren't as many options," she noted. "As time went on, I've seen growth in building the program here and all over the country. Areas that used to not have lacrosse are growing at a ridiculous rate and getting really good."

As someone who has helped the sport grow exponentially in South Brunswick, Hvozdovic is also doing her part to help groom the next generation in the township. For the past four years, township girls in the second through ninth grade have had the opportunity to learn from current SBHS and college stars as part of the LaxRatz summer program.

"LaxRatz is an important thing we've been doing the past couple of years. South Brunswick has made an impact in the sport ever since Coach Coppola came in and he's done a great job changing the program and making us a team," Hvozdovic said. "If we can start these girls playing in the second or third grade, if we can start teaching them basic skills at that age, then South Brunswick can grow into one of the best programs in the state."

As a key component in an emerging dynasty with four straight titles in Greater Middlesex Conference lacrosse, Hvozdovic said she hopes her final season in the black and gold can be a memorable one.

"We've won the GMC's every year I've been at South Brunswick and I'd hate for my senior year to be the only one where we didn't win a GMC Championship," she said. "We've all been working hard to be a better team than we were last year. We've worked hard all off season with captain's practices every Monday night. We're just working really hard to make sure we maintain the same level of play as previous years."

To learn more about South Brunswick Youth Lacrosse and to get involved in the program click here.