Natalie Eastwood can still vividly picture the moment she got the phone call.
The Glenelg Country senior lacrosse goalie sprinted out of the Dragons’ gym during a January basketball game and answered her phone in the rain. Australian women’s lacrosse U-20 National Team coach Meghan Mollison was on the other end.
One week after tryouts concluded in Australia, Mollison told Eastwood that she made the national team. Eastwood is one of just two girls from the United States on the 20-player roster.
Deane Eastwood, Natalie’s father, grew up in Australia and moved to the United States in his mid-20s. During the pandemic, Natalie and her brother became Australian citizens, a requirement to try out for the team.
Australia, ranked No. 3 in the world, will be one of 20 nations playing in the World Lacrosse 2024 Women’s U20 Championship in Hong Kong Aug. 15-24.
“On the night that the head coach called her to let her know she made the team, she was over the moon,” Tracy Eastwood, Natalie’s mom, said. “Just really excited and very thrilled about playing with the girls and the coaches that she had met in Australia because she just loved them all. Also, just felt honored with the opportunity to be able to represent the country that her father was from and the country that she was now a citizen.”
Eastwood described the night as a “whirlwind evening,” one in which she rushed to share the exciting news with her family and coaches.
“I was expecting her to make it, seeing her play and her dedication,” Glenelg Country coach Chrissy Adair said. “You’re getting that relief of, yes, you’ve worked so hard. She’s given up a lot to make this happen to the point where she won’t be here for the majority of the summer. She’s going to come back and go right to school to start college. She was ready for it. She’s worked for it, and so seeing that dream of hers come true is awesome.”
At recruiting camps last summer, she was frequently asked to share a fun fact. Eastwood always shared her dual citizenship between the United States and Australia. When asked if she would ever play for the national team, Eastwood said it would be a cool opportunity but hadn’t put much thought into it.
But the more questions she got about it, the more she thought about it until she finally decided to act.. Initially struggling to find a helpful contact, she turned to Sharn Muffett, an Australian native and an assistant coach at the University of South Florida, where Eastwood is committed to play next spring.
Muffett connected her with Paul Mollison, Lacrosse Australia’s Director of High Performance, who coordinates the national teams.
Eastwood emailed him to introduce herself, touted her background and experience and shared several highlight videos. Through highlight tapes and word of mouth, she advanced to the third round of tryouts in December and January.
She initially felt nervous while flying with her dad to Australia over winter break. However, once on the ground, she formed an instant connection with her future teammates.
“When I was leaving, I said it was the best month of my life,” she said. “The way that I was able to fit in within an hour into the first day was truly incredible. I think it speaks to not only the girls that were there but the culture of Australian lacrosse in general. It truly is a family and it’s a tight-knit community.”
It was a simple and natural bond, as they united over a shared appreciation and love for lacrosse.
“They always say lacrosse is a small world in the U.S. I think in Australia, where it’s not as big of a sport, it’s an even smaller world,” Eastwood said. “Everyone really is just the nicest group of people. They’re all looking to just get better and enjoy the sport.”
Her father noticed a balance between the competitive nature of the event and the welcoming community.
“It was also really cool to see her interact and blend in so quickly and easily with a group of girls from another country because they were brought together by a sport,” Deane said. “The U.S. being a key player in the lacrosse world, they were all also very interested in meeting her and seeing what she had to say.”“
Initial cuts were made after a training camp in Adelaide. In January, the roughly 30 remaining girls played in a five-day Southern Crosse Tournament in Melbourne before final cuts.
It was Eastwood’s first exposure to international rules. Internationally, women’s lacrosse features a 15-meter arc as opposed to the 8-meter arc in the United States. Additionally, teams are only allowed a maximum of six players in the attacking zone, one less than in the U.S.
Since returning home, Eastwood keeps in touch with her teammates in a group chat, where the players hold each other accountable with workouts and practices.
She is missing her high school graduation to fly to Perth, Australia, on June 2, where she’ll stay with a teammate’s family all summer. Eastwood will join a local club team and participate in training tournaments in June and July, then play exhibitions with the national team in Japan in August before the World Championships begin. She is set to arrive at South Florida on the first day of classes in the fall.
“I’m pretty sure I’m going to cry. I’m tearing up now thinking about it,” Deane said of being able to see her compete at the world championships. “Certainly, there will be a lot of pride. As much as it’s pride, I’m just going to be so happy for her because I know how hard she’s trained and how much she’s put into this.“
Wearing the Australian jersey on the world stage for the first time has briefly crossed her mind. However, she’s never lost perspective through this chaotic, high-intensity journey.
“More than anything, I’m just grateful to have the opportunity and feel so lucky to be able to meet all these people and have these lifelong memories no matter what happens,” Eastwood said. “I think that’s what keeps me grounded and what I remind myself, especially when I’m playing.
“It’s not about the wins and losses, obviously, we’re going for gold. All of these experiences that I’m going to have and the friendships that I’m going to make with people that live across the world. That’s something really special that is going to be remembered for way longer.”