This week, Back Of The CAGE caught up with the #9 ranked senior on Long Island and from Eastport South Manor High School, Celeste Forte for our weekly Senior Spotlight series interviewing a new senior each week.
Celeste Forte has been awarded the Most Dedicated Athlete in her high school lacrosse years at ESM. She has chosen The University of Florida to attend because of it's atmosphere, on how they loved their athletes and for their proven record winning National championships. Let's see what else she could do being a Midfielder and Defense Lacrosse Athlete in her college years.
Q&A w/ Celeste Forte
Back Of The CAGE (BOTC): When you found out last year that the season was going to be canceled, what was your initial reaction and how did you deal with it and keep your spirits up? Celeste Forte(CF): At first I was obviously very upset that I wouldn't be able to play and that my seniors wouldn't get their season, but I used it as motivation to run and workout everyday because I knew one day we'd be playing again. As a team we also did workout challenges from home to keep us all connected during what would have been season.
BOTC: What is your favorite saying from your Coach Rose? CF: Don't play so uptight, be loose and play good.
BOTC: Having missed out on playing last year, how much extra motivation (if any) does it give to you personally and to your teammates in the short amount of time that you guys have been practicing together?CF: It definitely motivated us a lot to get back where we left off a year ago and personally I wanted to be the best player I could be for my teammates so we could go far.
BOTC: Although you missed last season, how much more will you treasure this season as this will be the last time that you will be playing high school lacrosse before going on to play at the collegiate level? CF: This season was amazing and I am very thankful for my teammates for making my last season so fun. We all became so close and because of that we played very well together. It is sad that we didn't get as far as we had hoped but I am not completely upset because I made a lot of friends in just this this one shortened season.
BOTC: What made you choose to attend the University of Florida, and what other colleges were you considering? CF:: I loved everything about Florida but one thing that really draw me to it was the atmosphere. The University of Florida is a sports driven school and many of their teams have won National championships, so to be a part of a school that loved their sports and athletes was an amazing plus to the school. I also loved Gainesville as a town and all it had to offer. I was also looking at Notre Dame and USC but ultimately picked UF.
BOTC: Are you superstitious and do you have any pre-game rituals?CF: I don't have any rituals so to say but whatever I did before a game I played good in, I would have to do the same routine every game day. So this season I would always have to have my warmup on walking into the school and I would have to wear my game day shoes all day.
BOTC: What's on your playlist before games?CF: My team would always get to the school 30 minutes before we had to walk out just so we could play music on our speaker. One of our main songs that we would listen to everyday was Run This Town by JAY-Z.
Rapid Fire Q & A's:
- Favorite Food? Ice cream
- Favorite Movie? Mamma Mia
- Favorite Sports Team? New York Rangers
- Favorite Athletes? Wayne Gretzky
See some of Celeste's career athletic accomplishments below: 2017, 2018, 2020 Under Armour All American, 2017 Under All American Champion, 2021 Under Armor All American Senior Team member, 2018 School Girls 1st Team Champion, U17 USA developmental team, 2017, 2018, 2019 County Champion, 2019 LIC and State Champion, 2019 All League, 2021 All County, Esm's Most Dedicated Athlete Award.
