LAKEWOOD, Ohio — Girls lacrosse is growing and there’s now a professional women’s lacrosse league here in the United States.

Lacrosse is also one of the five sports being added to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Lakewood High School just began their girls lacrosse program a few years ago and they are experiencing the growth of the sport first hand.

Gabby Ripley, a senior at Lakewood High School, has been a part of the team since its inaugural season three years ago.

“My dad convinced me to join. It was my first year here, and it was the first team, so it was something I felt comfortable just joining into,” Ripley said.

The program started with just 18 girls on the roster and has now grown to 40.

“I really enjoy it so seeing people come together and play a sport that I enjoy,” Ripley said.

Michelle Blauman is the head coach of the Lakewood High School girls lacrosse team. Blauman played lacrosse in college and is excited to be helping grow the sport here in northeast Ohio.

“And then turn into a coach and help grow the sport has been really rewarding, so coming here as like a budding program is really exciting for me,” Blauman said.

This is the first year that the team has been large enough to have a JV team as well. It’s all the first year that freshman have joined the team.

“The girls are just having a lot of fun and it’s leading to a lot of, ‘Oh my friend told me about the team and I decided to come out and try it,’” Blauman said.

Alvena Eh is one of those freshman and she originally joined because her friends did and now she loves to play.

“It’s like a learning opportunity just to become better as a person, as a player and a teammate,” Eh said.

Eh expressed how awesome it is to see the sport grow.

“I think it’s really cool to see that it’s getting bigger,” she said.