Erik DiGirolamo, a 2016 Parkland High School 2016 graduate, had made a name for himself on defense in two different sports in high school. He was a force to be reckoned with both on the football and lacrosse fields, and had league and district championships to prove it.

But after his first year with the Lehigh University mens lacrosse team, where he was primarily a long stick defender, the Mountain Hawks’ coaching staff asked DiGirolamo to make a switch. It was a big difference for him, but he welcomed the transition with open arms.

“I played close defense and LSM my entire freshman year and the fall of sophomore year,” said DiGirolamo. “Four days before our first game my sophomore year, I was asked to start playing short stick defensive midfield. I was definitely not expecting it at the time so it caught me by surprise, but I didn’t hesitate for a second.

“I knew that if the coaches were asking me to switch, it meant that they thought I could help the team the best at this new position, so I embraced it. It was definitely a bumpy transition in the beginning when it came to stick work, but I seemed to eventually get the hang of handling the different sized stick. It took a lot of hours outside of normal practice time to get to where I am now, but I had plenty of help along the way to make it a bit easier.”

Fast forward to a little more than two years later and DiGirolamo was competing in his final college season with Lehigh. But his senior season ended quicker and more abrupt than he and his classmates could have anticipated, as the Patriot League, along with the NCAA, canceled spring sports seasons due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

“When the first rumblings of our season potentially getting canceled rolled around, many of us thought there was no way this could actually be true,” DiGirolamo said. “Waking up to a text from Coach Cassese that the Patriot League decided to cancel the remainder of our season was absolutely devastating. My heart dropped when I read the text in disbelief. First thing that came to my mind was that I wouldn’t be able to step on the field again with my brothers that I have dedicated hours of hard work with and overcame an abundance of adversity with over the last four years.

“The entire team was in shock when learning this news, but obviously it hit the senior class in a different way that took at least a few days to realize that this was actually reality. Honestly, I know many of us are still struggling with accepting the season is over, although we understand it was the correct decision by the league and NCAA in these tough times.”

The Mountain Hawks were off to a fast start to open up their 2020 campaign. They were 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the Patriot League with plenty of momentum moving forward, boasting a four-game win streak heading into what would have been an important league showdown at Army on March 14. Through five games played, DiGirolamo had six ground balls and two caused turnovers.

“The guys were definitely starting to feel like the momentum was finally starting to get going heading into Army,” said DiGirolamo. “Especially after losing in the final to them last season, we were looking forward to seeing how we matched up with one of the top teams in our league at the time. One of the most frustrating parts of the season ending so quickly was that we felt as if we weren’t close to reaching our full potential as a team and definitely left a lot of meat on the bone. Being around four different teams throughout my career at Lehigh, there was definitely a special energy and feeling being around this one. At this point though, all we can do is be thankful we at least got to play the games we did.”

Like all collegiate student-athletes, there is a growing up stage in every person’s life, entering as a freshman both in the classroom and on the respective sporting venue. For DiGirolamo, he grew up fast, but with the help of teammates and fellow students around him on campus. It made the decision to attend Lehigh University worthwhile.

“The most difficult part of making the transition from a high school student-athlete to college, as most athletes would say, is the large difference in time commitment,” DiGirolamo said. “The number of hours that must be committed to both school and lacrosse can be overwhelming at first. The nice part about the transition is that you aren’t going through it alone. My classmates and I would always go to the library together after a long day of lacrosse, so if someone decided they felt too tired to do school one night it would almost guilt them into fighting through it because we all knew how important it was to balance academics and athletics.

“I think everyone on my team, and in Lehigh athletics, has a similar “grinder” mentality that makes us all get along very easily. Overall, I could not have picked a better place to spend my college career thanks to all the amazing people that I was surrounded by.”

DiGirolamo was a standout on the football and lacrosse teams at Parkland. But he was a standout in the classroom as well, epitomizing the student-athlete mantra. That aspect of his life continued in his studies at Lehigh, earning Patriot League Academic Honor Roll honors his first three years on campus. His time as a Trojan surely helped him transition in both phases as a Mountain Hawk.

“The biggest thing at Parkland that helped me the most was the high level of competition that I played next to every day in practice, but also in games around the league,” DiGirolamo said. “During my time at Parkland there was a ton of talent that I learned from and turned me into the player I am today. Also, the coaches throughout my career at Parkland used their experience to turn me into a much smarter player as well.

“The biggest point of my career that helped me really dive into understanding the schematics of the game was my senior year when I stepped into almost a coach-type role. That season gave me an entire new perspective of the game that benefited me heading into Division I lacrosse.”

DiGirolamo will graduate this May with a degree in finance. He has a job in real estate finance in Philadelphia awaiting him after graduation.