This article appears in the April edition of USA Lacrosse Magazine. Join our momentum.
Reagan Bischoff has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, dyslexia and ADHD.
But her can-do attitude on the lacrosse field and in YouTube videos sets an example for her peers.
"Mental is half the thing when you’re doing something difficult.” said Bischoff, a 13-year-old goalie from Potomac Falls, Virginia.
Bischoff’s parents, Danielle and Johnny, always encouraged her to explore new activities. Same goes for her younger brother, who is legally blind. Bischoff has done everything from softball to swimming to horseback riding. She earned a black belt in Taekwondo. She plays the trumpet. She might try volleyball.
“In my family we never say, ‘I can’t,’” she said. “We say, ‘I will try but I might need help and a little bit of time.’”
Bischoff said lacrosse gave her confidence. She started with the Algonkian Lacrosse Club rec program in Loudoun County. A midfielder at first, she soon moved to the position her father played in high school in New York. She even wears his No. 27.
“I chose lacrosse because it strengthens my left arm, and my dad can help me because he used to play,” said Bischoff, who is in eighth grade. “It keeps my mind moving.”
Bischoff started playing travel with Cavalier Lacrosse in fourth grade and is in her first year with Pride Lacrosse’s 2027 Red Loudoun team.
“She’s going to do amazing things throughout her life,” Pride coach Dana Drever said. “You don’t get a Reagan every day.”
Bischoff was just two months old when doctors removed the part of her brain causing as many as 60 seizures per day. The surgery halted her seizures temporarily but resulted in cerebral palsy on her left side. Her left arm, hand and leg are weaker than her right side.
“With my disability, it’s difficult for me to come out of the goal, and to switch to my left hand and pass lefty like the other people on my team,” she said.