By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications
 
Family is an integral part of Sabrina Mertz's identity. Family is also in the fabric of Lehigh women's soccer's DNA.
 
Through good times and bad, family will always be by your side.
 
Sabrina had a lot of family by her side growing up; gatherings would routinely feature upwards of 60 people.
 
"I only have a younger brother, but I have a lot of cousins who I'm always with," said Mertz. "Some relatives actually live right next door from us. They're like my other siblings as well."
 
Today, Mertz gets to spend her days with two families, her biological family and her Lehigh soccer family. Not only is Mertz close to her Orefield, Pennsylvania home, allowing relatives to attend practically every game, but she was also drawn to the atmosphere and camaraderie in the Mountain Hawks' program.
 
"Family definitely came to the forefront when I was talking to the [Lehigh] coaches," said Mertz. "It's funny; no one on our team is an only child. Coach recruits people who are very family oriented. I come from a huge Italian family, so family has always been my number one."
 
A talented three-sport athlete in high school, Mertz didn't have a clear number one sport to play in college until she met Coach Lambinus. Speaking to Lambinus, she was convinced playing soccer at Lehigh was the right choice.
 
The transition to college soccer was as smooth as Mertz could hope, finishing her freshman season with a team-leading 17 points (seven goals, three assists), good for fifth in the Patriot League.
 
"I knew a couple of the older girls before, which made the transition a lot easier," said Mertz. "Everyone at Lehigh was so welcoming."
 
Mertz has grown, on and off the field in her time at Lehigh, serving as a team captain both as a junior and senior.  Mertz entered her senior campaign with 31 points (11 goals, nine assists) while also excelling in the classroom, currently owning a 3.55 GPA in finance.
 
Mertz has found a way to balance academics, athletics and other extracurricular activities such as the Lehigh Athletics Leadership Academy (now named Flight 45).
 
"There are a lot of people on our team - and at Lehigh - where academics come a lot more naturally," she said. "They're just naturally gifted. I've had to work to build study habits and figure out what works for me. I'm a pretty organized person, so making sure I get everything done on time is really important. It's important to make sure you put in the time to reap the benefits."
 
Among the many benefits Mertz has reaped was securing an internship at investment bank Macquarie this summer. It led to a full-time job offer for post-graduation, which Mertz signed.
 
A positive aspect of the company, and something that left her no doubt she wanted to work there full-time, was the family feel.
 
"I did a lot of sales and trading this summer, which I really liked," said Mertz. "Macquarie was a little smaller and less cutthroat than some bigger banks. The people right away were so welcoming and always wanted to do things with us outside of work, wanted to get coffee with us and take us to dinner.
 
"The internship correlated with soccer because it was a super fast-paced environment, competitive, but also very people-oriented which is what I was looking for," she continued. "I'm a relationship-based person. I just love people; they make me tick.
 
"I believe it ties back into how I grew up. Even if they're family friends, they're your family."
 
To become family, people must go beyond surface-level relationships, something Mertz is used to doing within the Lehigh women's soccer program.
 
"Our team really focuses on creating deeper relationships," she said. "It helps your play on the field as well, when you know everyone and are super comfortable around everyone. I always want to be super approachable."
 
"Sabrina's leadership might go a little unnoticed on the field and to people outside of our program," said Lehigh head coach Eric Lambinus. "Throughout the season, the coaching staff tries to stay connected with players outside of practice, especially if we sense they are struggling with certain things about being a student-athlete at Lehigh.
 
"On multiple occasions this fall, when we met with players, we were informed that Sabrina had already met with them and either provided valuable advice, or even just time with them to listen," Lambinus continued. "This level of emotional intelligence only comes with valuing the relationships with others and becoming a true servant leader."
 
Whether you're a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior, whether you're from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, California or anywhere else, Mertz and the Mountain Hawks are striving for an atmosphere where everyone feels at home.
 
"We have a couple girls who are from a little bit further away, like Kat Jacobellis from Arizona," said Mertz. "My mom and our family have really tried to take Kat under our wing and a lot of people on our team have done that too. It makes that transition a lot easier. Their immediate family is somewhere across the country, but for the time they're here, they also have family here."
 
At least once per year, the Mertz family invites the team over. It's just another example of the Lehigh soccer family looking out for each other.
 
"The parents will run our tailgates after games," said Sabrina. "It's about an hour-long tailgate with tons of food. We do birthdays for people – not only people on our team, but also for the parents."
 
The family feel has shown this year, with so many freshmen seeing significant time, and contributing. One example came in a 2-0 win over Temple when the two goal scorers were first-year players Rebecca Van Siclen and Courtney Supp.
 
"Two freshmen scoring ties back to making sure that we were very welcoming to them," said Mertz. "Everyone is truly happy for each other, whether you're on the field or on the sidelines."
 
Despite struggling on the scoreboard to begin Patriot League play, the Mountain Hawks continue to fight for each other. The family feel has come to the forefront.
 
"It says a lot about the character of this group that even without getting the results, they keep fighting," said Lambinus. "A lot of teams would quit, but they haven't. That says a lot about the character of the team and the relationship they have with each other."
 
No one has played a more important role in fostering a family atmosphere and empowering everyone to play to the best of their abilities than Mertz. Lehigh assistant coach and Mountain Hawks' alumnus Lauren Calabrese '07 has a unique perspective of Mertz within the scope of the Lehigh soccer family.
 
"Sabrina imbibes a sensibility that reflects the current culture of the team, but in many respects, represents a universal spirit inherent to the fabric of the program," said Calabrese. "While I am certainly Sabrina's coach, we also share our experience as members of a larger legacy to Lehigh women's soccer; it is in this way that Sabrina's commitment to team and family are discernible.
 
"Sabrina's team-first ethos is evidenced in her relationships and acts of friendship that are not immediately obvious to all (because they are not necessarily manifested in tangible actions that are seen on the field or recorded through statistical metrics), but honor the integrity of the program."
 
Mertz understands the importance of the big picture and how fostering a family atmosphere pays dividends in the long term.
 
"At the end of the day, when soccer is done, you're going to want all these people in your life," said Mertz. "Twenty years from now, you want to be able to call them if you need anything, you want to be able to go to all their weddings, their celebrations, their birthdays.
 
"I love everyone on our team, and our coaches. I want to go to practice every day because of the people. Obviously, soccer is super important and I love it, but I don't know if I could have made it four years playing soccer without the people that surround me every day."
 
Remember, through good times and bad, the Lehigh soccer family will always be by your side.