East County Athlete of the Week: Megan Dowdell

Megan Dowdell is a senior girls lacrosse player at The Out-of-Door Academy. Dowdell has 10 goals and seven assists through the Thunder's first three games of the season, held Feb. 15-18. 

When did you start playing lacrosse?

I started playing lacrosse in seventh grade. My little sister (Savannah Dowdell) had been playing club lacrosse and I had gone to one of her practices. I was like, 'What is this thing?' It looked fun. I started playing here at ODA that year and then in eighth grade I made the varsity team. 

What is the appeal to you?

Well, I am a big hockey fan. I love going to Tampa Bay Lightning games. But we don't have a hockey team or a field hockey team here at ODA. Lacrosse is the most similar sport to that in its rules. It's super fun. I love it so much that I volunteer coach now with the True Lacrosse club team. 

What is your best skill?

I have worked a lot on my stick skills. In lacrosse you want the stick to feel like part of your hand and I think I have done that. My leadership skills are also strong. I am a team captain and I helped create the warm-up shirts that we are wearing this season. I also run our team's social media accounts. I like to be as hands-on as I can in many ways. 

What have you been working to improve?

It's been mostly the mental side of things. I have realized I don't have to work on my game every single day if it is not making me happy. I want to keep enjoying it. There was a point this past summer where I was playing for Limitless Lacrosse and I was supposed to travel to Pennsylvania and Maryland for tournaments and it all felt like more of a task than something I was doing for fun. So, I have been focusing on playing when I want to play and with people I was to play with, and balancing that with staying in shape. 

What is your favorite memory?

Honestly, it was probably (Feb. 18). We played at the Community School of Naples and it was the most fun game I have played in my life. We won 19-11 and we had these natural celebrations after each goal. We had talked before about planning out our celebrations but we decided that was too tacky. So we were just running and jumping into each other's arms. It was great to play in such a positive and supportive atmosphere. 

What are your goals for this season?

We have not set any championship goals or anything as a team. We are just thinking that whatever (work) we put into the sport will be given back to us. So far we have been playing well. We are 3-0 in the regular season and we went 4-0 at the (preseason) Joey Powers tournament at Premier Sports Campus on Feb. 12. We just want to keep it rolling. 

What is your favorite food?

I'll say New York-style bagels. I just had a bagel sandwich for breakfast today, actually. They are so good. 

What is your favorite TV show?

I am watching 'Inventing Anna' on Netflix right now and I like it. I don't know if I have one favorite. I usually just end up watching whatever is on my YouTube 'Recommended' playlist. 

What are your hobbies?

I am big into cars. I actually spend all day Saturday (Feb. 19) in Orlando at the BMW Invasion which is a huge car show. People are surprised by that sometimes, but then I'll ask, 'Oh, is that a (Subaru) STI driving by?' because I can tell just from how it sounds. 

Which superpower would you pick?

I would pick the ability to speak all languages, including pet languages. 

What is the best advice you have received?

Stay true to yourself. At the end of the day all you have is yourself. Anyone else's opinion of you does not matter even if you think they do in the moment. 

Finish this sentence: Megan Dowdell is …

… Honest.