Noah Laurel Signs to Play Lacrosse at Lincoln Memorial University

By Presley Harrison, Shield Editor 

NRCA senior Noah Laurel committed to play lacrosse for Lincoln Memorial University on April 9, 2025. An outgoing leader on and off the field, Laurel is excited to pursue the journey God has for him in the next stage of his life. 

Laurel said he chose to play at Lincoln Memorial because "when I got [to LMU], I got this sense from God of comfort and peace. I also had a lot of opportunities to go into what I wanted to do there and play lacrosse at the same time, and I felt like God really set aside that school for me, regardless of what other people thought about the other schools I got into.”  

Laurel will be studying to become a veterinarian next fall at LMU. “The first three years of school, I’d be in my undergrad for animal science, and then the fourth year they’ll send me into vet school,” Laurel said.  

When he started playing lacrosse, Laurel had no idea the opportunities God would present him in the coming years.  In sixth grade, a couple of his friends wanted to try out for the lacrosse team and said he should join. "So, I went out there, and I remember I bought the wrong stick. I brought a girls’ stick on my first day of tryouts. It was just like, wow. But I went out there and just fell in love with the game, and I’ve been playing ever since,” said Laurel.  

Even though the future can appear daunting, Laurel knows that God is by his side, no matter what. “I’m going to shoot for the absolute best and give it my all and see. I’ve heard from people it can get difficult to balance athletics and school all in one, but I’m just going to give it my all and see what happens,” he said. “If God’s presenting me this opportunity, I feel like He’s telling me to take it, and I’m not going to worry one bit because I’m in His hands.” 

As he gets ready to leave high school and head to college, Laurel has a long list of people he would like to thank. He said, “Definitely all my teachers. If you had me in middle school, for putting up with me, and if you had me in high school, for teaching me so much.” Laurel said that athletes learn a lot of lessons from the classroom that they apply in sports, like taking directions and following them. “That’s such a big thing that kids don’t realize you learned in the classroom.”  

For all they taught him on the field, Laurel wanted to thank his coaches in both club lacrosse and at NRCA. “And I just want to thank all my coaches, my [Carolina Hilltoppers coaches] — Coach Chandler, Coach Berger — and then obviously NRCA Coach Florio for just sticking with us all the time,” Laurel said. “Also, my parents and my sister, for coming to tournaments far away and always supporting me. And [I’d like to thank] God.”