ROAR MAGAZINE REWIND (From Fall 2016)
Stacy Rucci, Field Hockey
The following ran in the 2016 Fall ROAR Magazine as a Q&A! While the answers may be from a few years back, these glimpses of Lion student-athletes still resonate as Penn State continues to come together to maintain the bonds that makes Penn State great! #weare!
As a women's field hockey player at Penn State, Stacy (Gilburg) Rucci was a first team All-America selection in 1991 and a Final Four participant in 1990 and 1991. She played in the U.S. Olympic Festival in Los Angeles in 1991 and was a member of the A Camp U.S. field hockey team in 1990 and 1991. Off the field she earned a degree in art education and stayed busy with numerous activities, including dancing in the Penn State Dance Marathon. She is currently an event coordinator for the National Wrestling Coaches Association. Stacy lives in Lititz, Pa. with her husband Todd ('93) and two sons, Hayden (15) and Nolan (13).
What is your first memory of Penn State?
My recruiting trip. I never liked Penn State that much before because everyone from Lancaster loved them so much and it was sort of annoying. I guess I needed to see it for myself!
How do you think the role of a student-athlete has changed over the years since you competed?
I think when I was going through it in the late 80s and early 90s, I thought it was really intense and I was fully invested and loved it (most of the time). However, I don't think we had anything on today's athletes. Everything is more amplified, from how they perform to what the say and how they say it. I always tell the athletes that I currently coach how bad I feel for them because I know it's a lot of pressure, but if they can stick together and have fun together, that's how they get through it and their lives will be that much more fulfilled in the end.
How did competing as a student-athlete prepare you for life after college?
Playing field hockey in college gave me the structure and support to go out and tackle life after college. It gave me the confidence to be independent and explore college coaching opportunities around the United States and has definitely shaped me into the wife, mother, coach, professional and volunteer I am today.
What is your fondest Penn State memory?
Being one of the first athletic teams to dance in the Penn State Dance Marathon in 1991. The field hockey team joined up with Chi Phi that year and that got the ball rolling for student-athletes to participate instead of just sororities and fraternities. Besides childbirth, it was the hardest 48 hours of my life! I loved everything about my time at Penn State — all my field hockey games and making memories with my teammates and fellow athletes. Probably my best memory was meeting my husband in study hall my freshman year!
What is your proudest accomplishment(s) since leaving Penn State (Answer from Fall of 2016)?
Coaching field hockey at Stanford, Duke and Elizabethtown College before I accomplished my best job of being a mom to two three- and four-sport athletes!
What is the best part of your job?
Working with college coaches!
If people enter your home, how long would it take for them to know you're a Penn Stater?
They usually already know before they enter our house because we wear it proudly. If it was the first time in our house it would take you a while as we keep our past sort of low key.
