BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Shania Roehrich's response to the question was quick and direct, without elaboration or a detailed explanation.
 
Simply, "Why not?"
 
A more appropriate punctuation to her answer to the question of "Why Campbell?" would have been multiple question and exclamation marks to properly convey the emotion the graduate student feels about her alma mater in general and its lacrosse program in particular.
 
In a family that includes three children, Shania and her sister and teammate, Sienna, are the youngest.  Shania admitted that her athletic and academic scholarship package played a big role in deciding on where to pursue her collegiate career.  However, it was the Campbell program and staff that really set the place apart from other schools.
 
"To be honest, I have a younger sister and financial aid was (a) huge (factor in her decision), and I had a lot of academic aid as well.  But I also knew I really wanted to go here," said Shania.
 
Sienna noted that her scholarship package "did play a role, but I was looking more at the team, team chemistry, and making sure I felt at home."
 
The generosity of Fighting Camel fans, alumni, family, and friends truly make a difference in the lives of student-athletes at Campbell University.  Through the newly created Women's Empowerment Fund, the Fighting Camel Club's goal is to make that experience even better, specifically for our female student-athletes.  To join the Fighting Camel Club, click here.
 
Early start
Shania started playing soccer before she took up lacrosse as a third grader.  Sienna started even earlier, during kindergarten.  In addition to earning recognition in their primary sport, both also competed in soccer and basketball in high school.  Shania also participated in indoor track and outdoor rock climbing, while Sienna was a member of the swim team.
 
Through the recruiting process, Shania discovered Campbell and quickly identified with the team's culture of encouragement and competition.
 
"I came to camps here. We drove down for a prospect day, met the team and everyone was so proud of each other's successes," Shania recalled.  "I feel like other teams that I visited were more like 'oh she's taking my starting spot.'  Obviously, we're competing every single day in practice, but not trying to bring anybody down at the same time."
 
Sienna was able to get an insider's look at the program during her older sister's first four years on the team and knew that she too wanted to make the 10-hour drive south to pursue her academic and athletic career.
 
"I narrowed it down to Campbell and Iona," said Sienna, "but because of the campus, the coaches, Shania's here, there was no doubt in my mind I wanted to come to Campbell."
 
Sharing a love of the game
The story of Shania and her younger sister and teammate Sienna, however, goes far beyond the Campbell student-athlete experience.
 
Both knew that prior to attending Campbell and competing as a Division I athlete, they wanted to share their love for the game with those who hadn't had the opportunity to grow up with the sport.
 
But the Roehrich sisters did not simply hold a clinic down the street from their home in Campbell Hall, N.Y., which is located about a 90-minute drive north from Manhattan in New York City. 
 
Instead, the sisters helped introduce the sport they took up at an early age in the hometown of their maternal grandmother, Juana, in Bonao, Dominican Republic.
 
Alongside their mother, Dilcia, the Roehrich's then lobbied World Lacrosse and since 2020, the family has been the leaders of Dominican Republic Lacrosse, as the national governing body for the sport in the Dominican Republic.
 
Dilcia serves as Chief Executive Officer, Shania as President, and Sienna as Vice-President of the organization, which became the 67th member of World Lacrosse in August 2020.  As a testament to the growth of the sport, membership in World Lacrosse now numbers 92 countries with the addition of Pakistan earlier this year.
 
The inspiration to start a Dominican lacrosse organization occurred while Shania was a student at The Storm King School in Cornwall on Hudson, N.Y.  A teammate was a member of the Puerto Rico national team, which prompted the Roehrich's to research the process of forming a national program for the D.R.
 
"I'm passionate about my heritage and I'm passionate about lacrosse," said Shania. "I just want to bring that to the Dominican Republic."
 
Not a lacrosse "hot bed"
When sports fans think of the Dominican Republic, they generally start with baseball, in particular Hall of Fame members Juan Marichal, Pedro Martinez, Vladimir Guerrero, Sr., and David Ortiz.  Adrian Beltre will become the fifth Dominican to be enshrined in Cooperstown this summer, while Albert Pujols is all but assured of being a first ballot selection when he is eligible in 2028.
 
However, Shania and Sienna packed lacrosse gear and balls five summers ago when they visited their grandmother's hometown, which is in the center of the country and northwest of the capital of Santo Domingo.
 
"We brought a whole bunch of equipment and got a clinic going," recalled Shania.  "We just asked the kids there, 'do you want to try this?'"
 
Growing up around their grandmother, who divides her time between New York and Bonao, the Roehrich's developed an appreciation for the country.  From Juana, Shania and Sienna learned Dominican traditions and food, but truly felt the warmth of the people when they visited.
 
People who they had never met before asked if they were Juana's granddaughters.  Puzzled, the sisters responded yes, then asked how they knew them.  "Oh, your grandmother talks about you all the time," Shania revealed.
 
Bonao is known for its natural beauty high in the hills and is referred to as the "town of hydrangeas."
 
However, the people that the Roehrich sisters met made the place even more special.
 
"Everybody is kind of like family," said Shania.  "You can go next door as ask, do you have (an item to borrow)? and they'd give it to you."
 
Teammates
Shortened seasons in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic limited Shania to only 10 playing appearances over her first two collegiate seasons.  However, an NCAA waiver allowed her to extend her college eligibility for another season, one that would turn out to be Sienna's freshman year in Buies Creek.
 
However, due to injuries, the sisters were not able to compete alongside each other during the 2024 campaign.  While Shania set career highs in goals (12), assists (9) and points (21), Sienna was sidelined by early season shoulder surgery.
 
Bonding moments
Shania recalls the misfortune of a bus breakdown on a road trip home from Clemson in March 2023 as especially memorable because it provided another time for the team to go through a hardship as a unit and make the best of the situation.
 
Sienna looks back on this season's long bus ride home from Monmouth when the team played karaoke on the bus for hours while making lasting memories.
 
Campbell Lacrosse Culture
"Our team is built on courage, faith and legacy," said Sienna.  "Those standards being set in place helps so much with our culture."
 
Shania looks back on five years in the program and doesn't want to leave its tight-knit community, even though she is ready to pursue her dream of working in the veterinarian sciences.
 
"When I got here, Coach (Dawn) Easley was expecting (her daughter) Ryleigh, and I just babysat for her the other night," said Shania.  "We have so much respect for her as a coach; she's someone you can trust."
 
New conference, familiar faces
Campbell's move to the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) last summer not only meant a step up from the Big South Conference from a competition standpoint, but also provided many of its players with the opportunity to play in front of more friends and family members on a regular basis.
 
Twenty-one members of the 2024 Fighting Camel roster are from states that lie within the CAA footprint.  Road trips to Stony Brook and Hofstra on Long Island, Monmouth in New Jersey, Drexel (Philadelphia), Delaware and Towson (Md.) cut down on travel to away contests for many families of team members.
 
"Our grandparents were able to see us in person more often this year, and our brother Bobby as well as friends," said Shania.  "Our family has this loud whistle, and it was indescribable to hear it and look up and there they are!"
 
The next step
Shania, who graduated with a B.S. in biology in 2023 and worked toward a master's in education the last year, plans on working at a veterinary hospital and applying for vet school.
 
With her collegiate playing career over, Shania will have to settle for visits to campus to see Sienna and her friends and look forward to the annual Campbell Lacrosse alumni game.
 
Sienna has yet to declare a major but is interested in education and coaching.  With a medical redshirt waiver, she'll have four years to decide her career choice.
 
"I'm not sure which path I want to take," said Sienna, "education or sports management to continue coaching.  I love the sport of lacrosse and introducing it to younger generations."
 
Shania: "I think that you just gave your answer."