Lacrosse has been one of the fastest growing sports on the Eastside for several years and recently, a handful of local talent has found its way to the Division I level to compete.

One of those players is Alex Foreman, an Eastside Catholic graduate and former state champion with the Crusaders now with the University of Southern California.

The Trojans are one of five Pac-12 programs to compete in women’s lacrosse at the intercollegiate level as part of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, and one more member institution adding the sport could result in full status with the Pac-12.

Foreman and her USC teammates will be back in the area Sunday, Oct. 13 in the Seatown Classic, taking on the University of Oregon in the first ever NCAA Women’s Division I lacrosse game played in the state of Washington.

She took some time while running between classes to talk with the Reporter about her start in the game, memories from a state title and adjusting to life in the Southland.

Issaquah-Sammamish Reporter: When did you start playing lacrosse?

Alex Foreman: I started playing in seventh grade. My younger brother started playing and it looked really cool so I wanted to get in on it.

Reporter: What do you remember most from your early days playing lacrosse and what would you tell a

Foreman: When I was starting I liked it was brand new. I knew I could play, get good at it and then teach other people. In high school I was the only one of my friends that played. I brought 14 friends with me and it became the thing to do. It’s not just playing with select teams, girls you don’t know from all over the state. It is people you’ve grown up with. You know each other so well and you’re like a family on the team. I think that is part of the reason we won my junior year.

Reporter: Your mom was the head coach at Eastside Catholic when you played in high school. What has been difference playing for a different coach and do you and your mom still talk lacrosse?

Foreman: I don’t know if it just because of my mom or because it is college, but there is a lot more strategy involved. Since it is college, you also don’t have to teach new players how to catch and throw every season. It is something we still bond over. She calls me after practice and we tell each other what we’ve done.

Reporter: What do you remember from the state title game?

Foreman: It was the same day as our prom, so everyone was pumped up for that day in general. The game was against a team we hadn’t played, Kennedy, and we lost to them the year before. I think we just came out with an underdog attitude. We knew if we killed the game it would be a super fun day. The game was more fun than the prom, for sure.

Reporter: What has been the biggest difference in the Southern California lifestyle?

Foreman: The pace of everything here is so fast. Social media, people, everybody just flying around doing a million things at once. The feeling in Seattle was more laid back, not as rushed. It’s really intense here, but you get sucked in. I love it.

Reporter: How excited are you to have a chance to come back to the area to play with USC?

Foreman: I’m pumped. I hope my teammates don’t think I’m from the sticks, though. I can’t wait to see all the girls I played with or coached in camps. I hope they all come check out what it would be like to play at that level.

Reporter: What do you hope people take away from seeing Division I women’s lacrosse?

Foreman: I’m hoping they just see it is a legit thing. It is growing really fast in Seattle and on the West coast in general. I think a lot of people are assuming if you’re the best on your high school team, you’re good enough to play Division I. That is sometimes the case, but the level of competition is getting so good around Seattle and it has a chance to get even better.

Reporter: The biggest news out of USC recently has been the firing of football coach Lane Kiffin in the wake of the program’s continued struggles on the field. Has it dampened your enthusiasm for Trojan football?

Foreman: I always enjoy going to the football games. A lot of the guys on my team are my best friends. It’a bummer to lose a coach in the season for any team. USC will make the best of it.