Competition and Family
How one Trojan uses her background as motivation
LOS ANGELES – Maggie Ramsay has always sports – She has been playing since she could walk, often with her older sister.
Maggie first picked up a lacrosse stick in 2nd grade, and it quickly became both her best and favorite sport. She always knew she wanted to play sports at a college level, so when multiple Division I schools recruited her to play attack, she jumped at the opportunity.
COVID made it nearly impossible for Maggie to visit and understand what each school had to offer during recruitment. Johns Hopkins, Cal, Boston College, and Boston University all made her offers, but none besides USC could allow her to play alongside her older sister, Katie.
Also, she knew what she was getting into at USC – Maggie got a “backstage pass” into the experience through her sister’s journey.
Over her athletic career, Maggie has never officially shared the field with Katie. They are four years apart, but COVID-19 gave Katie an extra year of eligibility. Maggie is a freshman, while Katie is a super-senior and one of the captains.
Maggie commented on the unique opportunity, saying, “ (it’s) one of the only good things that came out of COVID.”
Hailing from Connecticut, Maggie wasn’t upset to move to sunny southern California, where she can play lacrosse year-round. She always wanted to come to California to experience something different; her older sister was the icing on the cake.
In her first few months, Maggie has recognized the intense commitment of being a college student-athlete; however, she doesn’t enjoy how athletics takes time away from school and vice versa.
Still, Maggie acknowledges the excellent sports staff at USC: “We have the most sports psychologists out of anyone in the nation.” Furthermore, the tutors and other resources have been excellent.
“I think we're really supported here. That's one of the reasons I wanted to come here so badly.”
Maggie is also one of the first classes of student-athletes to benefit from NIL opportunities. The lacrosse team has had a few meetings thus far to discuss NIL, and all have a mobile app where they can view potential deals.
Her older sister Katie has many NIL opportunities, as she runs a popular vlog on Youtube that attracts potential business deals. Like her sister, Maggie is excited to dive into the NIL world and make the most of her opportunities.
Beyond the life of a student-athlete and NIL, Maggie loves the USC sports community and her team's culture.
“Everyone supports each other, and I think that's something special.”
On the lacrosse field, Maggie is a great teammate – her favorite thing is assisting on goals.
“I think making the perfect pass is really satisfying.”
Above all else, Maggie cannot wait to play alongside her older sister when the season starts.