Page 30 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No 67

School’s Out for Summer!!

By Casey Leger

Name: Adriana Conti

Sport: Women’s Basketball

Present School: Queens
Program: Business

a Citadelle seems to be doing very well when it comes to grooming elite basketball players.
LAdriana Conti is a La Citadelle grad, and she happens to be besties with Myriam Fontaine,
another La Citadelle alumnus who is an athlete, featured in last month’s edition of Sports Energy.
“We’ve been playing basketball together since about grade 4,” says Conti of her long-time
friend. In fact, it was when Queen’s personnel scouted Fontaine that they took note of Conti.
“When I got into Queen’s, I contacted the coaching staff, and they offered me a spot on the team,”

she says.
For Conti, getting into Queen’s was always the game plan. In high school, she was an honour roll student who consistently recorded a 90+ average,
and she is on track to graduate from the prestigious Smith School of Business with the class of 2020. The school accepts 500 students per year out of
several thousand applications.
One of the best things about being an elite Queen’s athlete, as far as Conti is concerned, is the impressive level of school spirit and pride at the
university. “We have a very strong athletic community,” she says, “and we are always connecting to Queen’s alumni. It’s not so much about putting
it on a resume as it is about meeting people.”
“It’s like taking a 6th class,” says Conti of the commitment athletes make to their programs. There are several practices every week, and that doesn’t
count supplemental weight and fitness training. “Taking the step from high school to university sports… There’s a crazy difference between the levels
of play,” according to Conti. And that complexity is one of the things she loves the most about her sport. That, and going into her third year, she is
regularly cracking the starting 12 line up.

Name: Lawson MacDonald By Molly Kett

Sport: GHockey, Tennis, Soccer

Present School: Marian University
Program: Second Year Finance/Marketing

awson MacDonald is certainly ready to unwind after a successful year at Marian University in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, but
Lthe athletics and working doesn’t stop just because his class schedule does.
This year, MacDonald took some of his first business classes, as he’s studying Finance and Marketing with an MIS minor.
“My school is a liberal arts school, so my first year was mostly general classes so I really enjoyed my business classes. I was
pleased to keep a 4.0 GPA through my first two years. I was also honoured to be asked to attend a Model UN conference in New
York City. That was a very life changing experience,” says MacDonald. “In terms of sports, I got to play on three sports teams
at school: the varsity hockey and tennis teams and the reserve varsity soccer team. My hockey team made it to the National
Tournament where we lost in the first round. However, it was very exciting and a privilege to be among the top teams in the
country for Division III. In Tennis I was #2 doubles and #3 singles on my team and won four singles matches and one doubles
match. My team didn’t make the playoff tournament but had a strong season.”
MacDonald is happy to be home for the summer and can be found working at the LCBO in Cornwall, while also tutoring for the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario. While he’s not
working, MacDonald will be spending quite a bit of time training.
“I have a very busy training schedule as well as an on-ice program that I follow for hockey in the summer, and I try to fit the workouts in anytime I can around work,” says MacDonald. “Luckily,
the on-ice sessions are either early in the morning or in the evening so it works out great. I also play soccer in the Cornwall Men’s League and try and get on the tennis court as much as I can. In terms
of specific training, one big goal of mine is to continue to get faster and stronger, so that will include a lot of weight training and agility work. I also hope to improve my shot so I will be shooting a
lot of pucks.”
In September, MacDonald will be entering his junior (third) year of school and will be taking many upper level courses. Hockey wise, his team is losing some key forwards.
“I hope to work hard and become the guy who fills those important minutes and become a leader on the team,” says MacDonald. “I will play soccer and tennis again next year as well.
Although he loves his time away at school, MacDonald says he misses the people from home the most.
“I love where I live in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. I have a lot of fun, but it can’t replace family and friends that I have back home. I love coming home in the summer so I can spend time with family,”
says MacDonald. “On a side note I also miss Cornwall pizza and ketchup chips, which are not available in US, and my parents’ home cooking.”