Ohio women's lacrosse began the season 2-0 for the first time since the program restarted in 1999 and Dana Dobbie is just one of many fresh faces to help the Bobcats do so.
The freshman from Guelphont, Ontario in Canada has had lacrosse on the brain for as long as she can remember.
"I grew up in a pretty small town where men's lacrosse was huge," Dobbie said. "My father played and my brother was really big into it. I pretty much did whatever my brother did and I started playing men's lacrosse. When I was 13, I converted over to the women's side."
For the last two years, Dobbie has played on the Under-19 Canadian Juniors team. In the summer the team placed third at the World Cup. It was influences from her times on the team that led to Dobbie's choice of Ohio.
"I knew about Lindsey Hart, Lynz Keys and Jen Cassidy," Dobbie said. "They played on the junior team before I did and they are on the senior team. Those are some huge players back home that, on the junior team, are looked up to and are players we wanted to be like in the future.
I got a call from (head coach) Kate (Brew) about a year and a half ago and as soon as I talked to her I just fell in love with her. She's a great person and it was really important to me when picking a school to have a relationship with my coaches. It's not just lacrosse. The reason I came to Ohio University was probably because of Kate Brew."
The college transition has not been a problem for Dobbie, who has experienced success in just her first three collegiate games for Ohio.
In her initial weekend as a Bobcat, Dobbie scored her first college goal only 1:02 into the season's first game against Albany, an eventual 16-4 Bobcat win.
"Before the first game I was super-nervous and I normally don't get nervous," said Dana. "When that first ball went in it was probably the biggest sigh of relief ever."
The freshman went on to score two more tallies against Albany, recording the first hat trick of her college career in just more than 20 minutes. Dobbie would not have to wait long for her second.
In Ohio's next game, Dobbie netted four against Duquesne and was named Ohio Realty/GMAC Real Estate Athlete-of-the-Week, a complete surprise for the freshman.
"When my coach said that, I asked if she was serious," Dobbie said. "I didn't even know there was an athlete of the week."
In the Bobcats last game, an 8-12 loss to a tough North Carolina team, Dobbie recorded a goal and an assist to bring her season point total to 10.
Dobbie credited her success to good field awareness, confidence of where and when to put the ball and a great team around her.
"I recruited her to come in and be that player," said Brew. "Coming into the season I knew what she was capable of doing. She has definitely stepped up as a freshman."
During her time at Ohio, Dobbie said she has not forgotten the fun associated with lacrosse and has continued old traditions with Ohio teammates.
"Keys, Cassidy, my roommates and I all wear one high sock instead of two," said Dana. "When I played Junior Canada, there were four of us who wore one high sock to intimidate the other team. Here it is kind of a representation of where I have been to where I am now. I didn't want to wear one sock by myself so Cassidy and Keys offered to wear one too. It kind of turned into a Canadian thing."
The freshman said she thanks Brew and Hart, now an assistant coach at Ohio, for helping her to improve.
Brew said it comes from Dobbie's work ethic.
"She's such a hard worker," said Brew. "Both on and off the field she comes to practice to become a better player."