Marymount's Meagan Gagnon named Medal of Inspiration Recipient
LANCASTER, Pa. – Every day, student-athletes grind through the pressures of playing the sport they love while maintaining a strong grade status in the classroom. However, when a student-athlete battles more serious obstacles, physically or in their personal life, they become an inspiration to all.
In the first year of the Atlantic East Conference, an award was created to honor those individuals who battled through adversity to become stronger versions of themselves. The 2019-20 Atlantic East Medal of Inspiration is awarded to Marymount University’s
Meagan Gagnon.
Meagan is just the third recipient of the Medal of Inspiration after the award was shared by Neumann University’s Joseph Gorman and Marymount University’s Clare McNulty in the Atlantic East’s inaugural year.
The Medal of Inspiration is awarded to the person from the Atlantic East who has persevered through extraordinary circumstances and whose determination, devotion and passion are exemplary, revered among their peers, and worthy of special recognition.
As this year’s recipient of the Medal of Inspiration, Meagan is deserving of the award because she overcame the odds and did so by excelling in all of her endeavors, truly being an inspiration to those around her.
Meagan’s Journey…
Meagan is a 2020 graduate of Marymount University and a goalie on the Saint’s women’s lacrosse team. She graduated with a 3.5 GPA and a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry. Throughout her journey as a student-athlete, Meagan has shown great resilience in all aspects of her collegiate career while putting herself through school.
Meagan remained hard-working and focused on her goals and excelled, while playing a sport, carrying a full academic schedule, and working 50-60 hours a week to earn the money to pay for her education.
The North Carolina native was not afforded the luxuries that many students have in college, such as being able to focus on their sport or academics without the worry of where money was coming from. Following a hard childhood and upbringing, Meagan spent the last four years putting herself through Marymount on her own.
As a junior, when Meagan’s student loans did not go through, she took it upon herself to work up to 60 hours a week across three jobs, while also carrying a full course load and playing lacrosse.
Her typical day would begin at 5:30 a.m. for practice, followed by classes during the day until around 4 p.m. If she did not have class, Meagan would nanny from noon to 4 p.m. From 4:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m., Meagan would work as a bartender before repeating the process the next day with a 5:30 a.m. practice. On the weekends, if the team did not have a game, Meagan would work in a bridal shop from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. before going to her bartending job.
All of her work went along with a full lacrosse schedule in the spring. Not only was Meagan able to manage her full schedule, but she had also moved into position to be the lacrosse team’s starting goalie in 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic ended the season. Additionally, upon graduation, Meagan was one of eight students selected into a master’s program at Northwestern University for Prosthetics and Orthotics.