Ainsley Thurston has been playing varsity lacrosse for Lake Highland Prep since she was a 7th grader.

“She’s been the team’s leading scorer for many a years but this year I think she’s taken her game to a different level,” Highlanders Head Coach Chris Robinson said.

  • Ainsley Thurston will play lacross at Duke next year
  • She scored 7 goals, in the teams, 18-8 win over Maryland power St. Stephens St. Agnes
  • Her and 3 seniors look to avenge last years state finals loss to American Heritage

“She’s doing a great job on draw control out in the middle of the field and playing great defense, coming up with big ground balls.”

Over Spring Break the senior led LHP to a 2-and-3 finish against the top teams from Maryland.

Capping off the week with an 18-8 victory over St. Stephens St. Agnes where she scored 7 goals, tying a career high. Thurston credits all the offense to how much her team is in sync.

“Our other attackers, like Marissa Faris, Sara Pokorny and then like Ashley (Thurston) my sister and then Jackie (Norsworthy) all of us know where we are supposed to be so we just passed and you’ll hit open cutters and as soon as you get in that groove it’s like no matter what you just keep finding it,” Thurston said of the match.

That win over last weekend for Ainsley and the three other seniors on this Lake Highland Prep lacrosse team was huge in building confidence heading into the back end of this season.

These seniors have unfinished business from last year as they fell to American Heritage in the state championship match.

“Since most us were on that team we came into the season like that’s never going to happen again,” Thurston explained. “We are going to keep going –this is going to be our year and that’s kinda been our motto.”

The win helps too with putting Lake Highland on the national stage.

“It’s a matter of upgrading schedule and getting the kids use to playing that upgraded schedule where we are playing a lot of the nation’s powers and now I think everyone knows we belong,” Coach Robinson added.

And for Thurston, who will be playing at Duke next year, she says she just wants this team to be an example for the next class.

“I want our team chemistry to stay as good as it is, at practice we are all always laughing. I want them all to look at Lake Highland Lacrosse and ‘that’s what it is supposed to be like.’ I hope that this year we win states, too, and we can be the team that everyone wants to be.”

The Highlanders have only dropped two matches this season and will play Colonial next on Tuesday. They will begin their district tournament on April 15th.