TRUMBULL—There’s a moment for a lot of athletes when the game shifts—when it stops being just something you play and starts becoming something you chase.
For Trumbull High senior Kylie Lucia, that moment came earlier than most.
Now, it’s taking her to Division I softball at Quinnipiac University.
“I chose Quinnipiac mostly because I fell in love with just the surroundings and the nature,” Lucia said on The Inside Corner, the CT Softball Blog’s Podcast earlier this spring. “I was initially looking down south, but then I saw Quinnipiac and I just fell in love with it. I fell in love with the coaches and the girls.”
Lucia, an outfielder for the Eagles, didn’t just find a school—she found familiarity. Two former teammates from her travel program, the Connecticut Charmers, are already committed there and will be upperclassmen when she arrives.
“They were just great mentors for me,” she said. “One of them was actually an outfielder, so I’m glad to join back up with her.”
That sense of comfort matters, especially with what comes next.
Division I athletics isn’t just a step up—it’s a lifestyle. Practices, lifts, travel, academics. It’s a full schedule that doesn’t leave much room for adjustment.
Lucia is ready for it.
“I love structure,” she said. “I feel like it’ll definitely be a challenge, but it’ll also give me structure to stay focused within college. I’m super excited to see what it’s like to be working out and practicing every single day.”
There’s honesty in her excitement, too.
“I am a little nervous,” she admitted. “I don’t know what it’ll be like to face working out and practicing every day. It’s just not something that I’ve done, but I’ve been working little by little to try and build up that stamina.”
That balance—confidence with a touch of humility—has been part of her climb.
Lucia didn’t always know college softball was even an option. That realization came in eighth grade while playing with the Seahawks, when the idea of emailing coaches and attending showcases first entered the picture.
“My freshman year was really when I first realized that I could really play college softball,” she said.
From there, the path wasn’t glamorous. It was built the way most are—quietly, repetitively, and with a lot of unseen work.
“Hours and hours of practice by myself and with trainers,” Lucia said. “As well as a lot of mental practice. I had to definitely work on my mental side of the sport… and just trying to balance life with sports, with working out.”
That last part might be the most telling.
Because for Lucia, the jump to Division I isn’t just about talent. It’s about discipline. Routine. The ability to show up every day and do the work, whether it’s noticed or not.
Soon, she’ll bring that mindset from the outfield in Trumbull to a bigger stage in Hamden.
Same game.
Just faster, louder—and well-earned
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