When the Ivy League canceled competition because of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, senior attacker Olivia Markert was devastated.

Markert had carefully planned out her academic career: four years of undergrad, a year off from school and then studying medicine. The lack of Ivy League lacrosse in 2021 turned all of that on its head.

At first, she thought she would never get to play lacrosse again. But like many of her teammates, Markert ended up taking a gap year during the 2020-2021 school year. She worked at a nonprofit, helping mentor school children through a “really rewarding” job, she said. She had plenty of time to reflect on her lacrosse experiences in the meantime, too.

“There’s the obvious parts of lacrosse that aren’t very fun, like running, if you lose a game, if you have a hard practice,” Markert said. “But when you can’t do it at all, you think to yourself, ‘Oh, I actually do really enjoy this sport and I just want to have opportunities again.’”

Now, Markert is back to receiving gameday-morning texts from her dad, lacing up her cleats and balancing a busy academic slate with lacrosse – and she doesn’t want to take any part of it for granted.

As Ivy League lacrosse has returned, Markert and her teammates are leading Yale to historic success. For the first time ever, the Bulldogs are 5-0 in conference play and have clinched a spot in the Ivy League tournament. Yale has taken down foes like Penn, which it hadn’t beaten since 2004, and Cornell, which had a winning streak over the Bulldogs dating back to 2007. At 9-3 after a 20-14 loss to nationally ranked UConn on Wednesday, Yale is on pace for its best season in 15 years.

Markert has played a key role powering Yale’s offense to new heights. She leads the Bulldogs with 36 goals — good for second overall in the Ivy League — and ranks third on the team with 33 draw controls. Her efforts have also led Yale to top-50 national rankings in scoring offense and points per game.

Beyond Markert and junior attacker Olivia Penoyer, the Bulldogs’ attack is loaded with underclassmen. Yale has 17 freshmen this year as a result of many recruits in the high school class of 2020 deferring enrollment. Midfielders Fallon Vaughn, Taylor Lane and Jenna Collignon have all emerged as standouts in their first season at Yale, each notching double-digit goals.

With so many young starters, Markert’s knowledge of the game has been vital.

“At any timeout or any moment between plays, you can see [her] directing other players, talking to them, helping them understand concepts, read defenses,” coach Erica Bamford said. “Her leadership over the past year has certainly grown.”

Freshmen typically have a learning curve, Markert said, but the adjustment period has been much faster for the Bulldogs’ many first-years. She said it’s been easy to build chemistry and trust with her new teammates, calling them smart and eager to learn.

For the Bulldogs, it’s been all about making the most of every moment – nearly two years without college lacrosse instilled that. And it’s certainly come across in their playing style. Markert said they’ve worked to become gritty, making concerted efforts to win ground balls, draw controls and “fight for everything.”

A sense of buy-in and belief has paid dividends for Yale as well. Bamford said it’s been extremely exciting to see the faith and teamwork of her players, particularly the seniors, pay off on the field.

“Those who have come here believed in our program, believed in what we want to accomplish,” Bamford said. “To see that belief and confidence grow is the most rewarding. The women on our team take ownership... It’s nice to see how much they support each other, how much they love each other. To see those efforts be rewarded on game day is really validating.”