Serena San Cartier will be a busy young lady for the next few years. The graduate of Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School is heading state-side, recruited by the Oakland University Golden Grizzlies in Rochester, Mich.
San Cartier will suit up both with the women’s soccer team, as well as the track and field squad, a tribute to the athletic ability she displayed both at the high school and club level in Greater Sudbury.
“We will be sharing Serena with our track program, but I know she will help us in the fall when soccer will be her main focus,” Oakland soccer coach Nick O’Shea said. “She is agile, fast and powerful, which are attributes we can use in the attack. She will play up front for us and has the ability to play centrally, as well as wide.”
Following in the footsteps of older sister Natasia, Serena is a product of the Sudbury Canadians system locally, having helped her team capture the OWSL Regional Championship this past summer, and earning a berth in the provincial level next year.
“Serena not only scores goals, but she is involved in almost every play,” her long-time Sudbury coach Frank Malvaso said. He described her as a bright young person who plays with all attributes — her head, her skill, and her speed.
“We have played in many U.S. tournaments and I have seen her play with some of the best going into the NCAA,” Malvaso said. “I have no doubt she will more than hold her own at this level.”
In addition, San Cartier is also an accomplished hurdler, having captured a bronze medal at the all-Ontario OFSAA Championships in 2008. “Serena is a spectacular 100-metre and 400-metre hurdler,” Lo-Ellen track and field coach Colin Ward said.
“Over the past four years, she has continually developed her hurdling skills and speed, to a level that is near the top in the country in her age group,” Ward continued. “It takes a calculated and relentless pursuit to develop track speed. Serena not only understands this, she shows the kind of determination and love for the sport that is required.
“There is still much untapped potential for her in track and field. I'm very pleased she will get the opportunity to develop it,.”
