Brianna Carrasquillo was the new girl from Long Island after moving from Rocky Point, N.Y., to Milton, Ga., midway through high school.

As she first took the field at Eagles’ tryouts, she could feel the pressure — the heavy expectations that come with being a lacrosse player from the hotbed of Long Island. That’s not to mention the expectations that come playing for Milton, winner of 11 state titles when Carrasquillo arrived in 2018.

“Definitely my goal was to try to impress, because everyone had heard that, ‘Oh, there’s a girl from Long Island coming down. She’s probably going to be good, since she’s from the North,’” Carrasquillo said. “I was feeling the same way. I was like ‘Milton, they’ve had, what, 11 state championships before I was there? So I was like, ‘I really have to make a statement when I come down.’” 

Carrasquillo successfully made her statement that first week, with several girls coming up to her and saying, “Holy [cow], you’re really good.” 

She never stopped making a statement, helping the Eagles to their 12th and 13th state championships. Milton was especially dominant in 2019, outscoring its opponents 431-124 and winning its last 11 games, all by eight-plus goals.

Carrasquillo was a huge reason why, leading the Eagles in goals (82) and draw controls (188). With her ability to earn possession and score, Carrasquillo was unstoppable. She is the Brine/US Lacrosse South Girls’ Player of the Year.

“[When] we got the ball in her direction on the draw, we felt pretty good, like she was going to come up with it,” Milton coach Tim Godby said. “She was able to get through the defense, whether it was a one-on-one or a one-on-two. She was always able to make moves and get to the goal and get a shot off. She shot, I think it was 80-percent shooting percentage this year, which is just unheard of, so her accuracy on shooting is just phenomenal.”

The Yale commit ended her time in Georgia as a US Lacrosse All-American and was one of just three South Region seniors to make the Under Armour All-America Game, in which she promptly scored four first-half goals, then focused on defense the rest of the way. 

If Carrasquillo made the transition look easy, it wasn’t.

“It was definitely difficult hearing about [moving to Georgia] through the middle of my high school career,” Carrasquillo said. “That was definitely the most difficult part, just picking up and moving.”

To that point, she had spent all of her life in Rocky Point, where she picked up the sport in second grade. She wasn’t committed to lacrosse. It was just one of her many sports, including basketball, soccer and track.

“It was just something to keep me busy, pretty much that my mom just kind of threw me into,” Carrasquillo said. “It wasn’t anything that I really thought I’d continue. It was just something for fun at the time.”

By fourth grade, Carrasquillo was playing travel lacrosse. She joined the Yellow Jackets, and by eighth grade, she realized she had a future in the game.

“I started realizing this is something that I can definitely see myself playing at the collegiate level — if not at the Division I level, at the highest level,” Carrasquillo said. “It was definitely something I knew I wanted to pursue at the highest level.”

Halfway through high school came the big surprise: Her family was moving to Georgia. 

Godby learned about his new star player by email. Carrasquillo’s father let the coach know they were moving to the area and that she would come out for the team. Godby still remembers watching Carrasquillo play the summer before her junior year.

“I knew right away she was going to be a great player,” Godby said. “She was just a dominant presence on the field, making great catches on the draw controls like she did for us in high school. She was a great player in transition making good passes, scoring, doing it all.”

 
BRINE/US LACROSSE
NORTHEAST PLAYER OF THE YEAR
BRIANNA CARRASQUILLO

School: Milton (Ga.)
Year: Senior
Position: Midfield
Stats: 82 goals, 188 draw controls
Coach Tim Godby: “Even though she’s been a great player for us in the program, she’s such a humble kid and very coachable, always wanting to do whatever is asked of her, just whatever she’s got to do to help the team win, so it’s great to see someone who does all the right things be able to get recognized like that.” 

Carrasquillo was timid at first, caught off guard by how friendly people were down south. Lacrosse helped ease her transition.

The summer between Rocky Point and Milton, she was playing at a tournament when three Eagles players came up to introduce themselves after her game. Those players — Erin Degnan, Maddie Erby and Allie Peebles — became her closest friends. 

“There’s no animosity or anything like that among players in our program,” Godby said. “We have a culture that’s all about trying to be successful and winning, and it’s not of our girls being selfish or having any jealousy or anything like that. The girls were excited to have a player of her caliber and experience coming into the program, and so they embraced it and welcomed her into the family.”

A couple of fellow juniors helped show Carrasquillo around the school. A cohesive senior group also helped ease the adjustment. There were sleepovers and shooting practices, plenty of chances for Carrasquillo to make herself at home. 

“The team, I think, is one thing that really made me comfortable, the Milton girls’ lacrosse team,” Carrasquillo said. “They’re just a bunch of really great people, and they helped me foster so many friendships, whether it be on the team or off the team, and I was able to develop more friendships in the classroom, so it was a great experience moving.

“It definitely wasn’t something I was looking forward to at first, but now looking back on it, I wouldn’t trade it for anything else, because it was a great experience moving here.”