Sport: Lacrosse
Born: July 18, 1979
Town: Oradell, New Jersey
Virginia Capicchioni was born July 18, 1979 in Oradell, NJ. Ginny had superb anticipation and quick reflexes, which served her well in her three favorite sports: field hockey, softball and basketball. She excelled in all three at River Dell Regional High School—where she played goalie on the field hockey team—but it wasn’t until college at Sacred Heart University in Connecticut that she found her true athletic calling.
Ginny continued to play goalie for the women’s varsity field hockey squad and, following her freshman season in 1997 was encouraged by her coach to try the same position in spring lacrosse. Ginny was resistant to the idea but didn’t want to jeopardize her standing so she suited up that spring and soon found that her skills were very translatable. She became an all-conference goalie in both sports for the Pioneers and was hooked on lacrosse by the time she graduated in 2001.
Even so, Ginny set her sights on making the women’s national field hockey squad—so much so that she turned down a chance to make the women’s national lacrosse team. That might have been a mistake, as she didn’t make the cut in field hockey. Jumping back into lacrosse, Ginny played with a women’s team in Baltimore while earning a master’s degree in School Counseling, but felt that her skills weren’t being tested. So she began playing with men and found she could hold her own despite standing only 5’6” and weighting less than 150 pounds.
While recovering from a broken collar bone, Ginny began watching indoor lacrosse (aka box lacrosse), which is played on a smaller field with fewer players and at a faster pace. It looked like a good fit for her. In 2001, she tried out for the Colorado team in the National Lacrosse League but didn’t make it. One year later, she tried out for the New Jersey Storm and made the team as a third-string goalie—beating out four men for the spot. Ginny played in two exhibitions and saw time in the season finale, which made her the first woman ever to play for a North American men’s professional lacrosse team.
Having proved herself as a woman in a man’s game, Ginny moved north of the border to play professionally in Canada’s minor and major leagues. She played eight seasons in the Ontario Lacrosse Association, Quebec Lacrosse League and Western Lacrosse Association. In 2010, Ginny joined the US men’s national indoor team and played in the 2011 World Indoor Lacrosse Championships. She saved 93% of the shots on goal to help Team USA take home a bronze medal. It marked the first time an American woman played for a men’s national team in any sport at an international tournament.
Ginny played in the North American Lacrosse League in 2012 and in the European Lacrosse League in 2013—both men’s leagues—and led the ELL in save percentage. In 2016, played for the Windsor Aigles, marking her ninth and final season as a pro in Canada.
Throughout her playing days, Ginny was employed as a lacrosse coach at the prep and college levels—including three years at Drew University and assistant gigs at Michigan, Louisville and Penn—and also gave clinics for men and women lacrosse goalies. In 2021, Ginny joined the women’s lacrosse staff at Rutgers.