Claire Harris Commits to Virginia Commonwealth University Class of ’25

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Junior Claire Harris announces her verbal commitment to continue playing lacrosse at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Junior Claire Harris announced her verbal commitment to Virginia Commonwealth University located in Richmond, Virginia via Instagram on Dec. 12. Harris will continue not only her academic career but her athletic one as a member of the VCU Women’s Lacrosse team. The team, part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I competitors, currently includes alumna Grace Hyde, freshman at VCU. 

There are a number of factors to Harris took into account when deciding where she would spend the next four years after graduation.

Harris employed a useful tactic when it came to deciding which school fit best. “My club coaches and parents both made me apply the ‘broken leg rule,’” explains Harris, “which meant that [I had to ask myself] ‘if I were to break my leg and lacrosse was out of the picture, would I still enjoy being at this school?’”

Though Harris hopes this never happens, she feels comforted knowing she’ll be content either way. “For VCU, I can confidently say that if that were to occur, I would still be very happy there.” 

Though she’s passionate about lacrosse and it was a big aspect of the recruitment process, Harris made sure to consider the academic setting as well. “I’m drawn to VCU because I want to become some sort of doctor when I’m older, and there is a hospital right in Richmond… it would be easy for me to start an internship there if I chose to.” 

If the athletic and academic opportunities weren’t already enough to convince her VCU is the right choice, the people were. “Besides the campus feel, I was also drawn to the coaches and players. The coaches had been so nice and down to earth and showcased all they had to offer very transparently which was a nice change of pace in the recruiting process,” said Harris.

After taking everything into consideration, visiting multiple other schools, and making comparisons between their features, Harris is ecstatic about her decision to commit to VCU. “[The other schools] were missing something and I couldn’t figure out what… the moment I stepped foot on VCU’s campus, I just knew this school had what I wanted. It felt more like home,” said Harris.