Can you Pickett?
At St Peters, it’s not uncommon to know of, or be in a class with, an elite-level athlete—someone who pushes to achieve Plus Ultra in their chosen sport, representing their country as well as our College. What is less common is having that elite athlete as a teacher…but it does happen!
The pictures in this article show one of our members of staff—a St Peters Indooroopilly teacher who started with us this year. The question we have for you is, Can you Pickett?
Okay, so maybe our questioning was a little obvious, but meet Ms Bella Pickett—a Maths and Psychology teacher at our Indooroopilly campus. Earlier this year, before the restrictions of COVID-19, Ms Pickett was selected on the Australian Lacrosse Association’s (ALA) Australian Women’s Senior Squad. Next year (global pandemic pending) she will be representing the country at the 2021 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championships and the 2021 IWGA World Games. Given lacrosse isn’t a game we hear much of around the College, we decided to catch up with her to find out a little bit more.
Why Lacrosse?
Ms Pickett is originally from South Australia, where lacrosse is quite big. The sport, for her, is a family affair, with her Mum, brother and cousins all playing, plus she happens to be extremely good at it. She received a scholarship to play lacrosse at the University of San Diego, which she accepted, though it’s not the only sport she’s good at.
After Uni, Ms Pickett returned to Australia to complete her Masters of Teaching. When she moved to Queensland, she joined a triathlon club and has placed in the top 10 of her age-group at the Mooloolaba Triathlon. She gets up early in the morning to train before school and is very organised to ensure she can fit everything in.
Training in Queensland and through COVID-19
Lacrosse involves a lot of running (Ms Pickett said that it’s not unusual to cover up to eight kilometres in games), but being a 10-a-side sport with a ball, racquets and offensive and defensive strategies, there’s also a lot of teamwork and skill involved. While the social distancing restrictions of COVID-19 have impacted Ms Pickett’s training, it’s not something she wasn’t used to, living in a state where the game isn’t widely played. So how has she been training to the level she’s needed to?
“I spend a lot of time against the wall, playing Wall Ball,” she told us. “Mayer Oval and the Harts Road Oval both have perfect Wall Ball walls and [at the start of the year] after everyone had gone home, that’s where you could spot me!”
In addition to self-training, Ms Pickett joined the University of Queensland Lacrosse Club. There she plays with experienced and first-time players alike (including St Peters Old Scholars). While the level is more geared toward a social sport, it still gives her a bit of game play while she’s waiting for the next ALA Australian Women’s Senior Squad training.
Where can you spot Ms Pickett now?
Online! Like all of our teaching staff at St Peters, Ms Pickett has been working hard to set up her classes for At Home Learning, which started yesterday. She’s excited to create a sense of consistency for her students, delivering the same high standards of education she would be in the classroom. If you’re in one of her classes, be sure to ask her a bit about her sporting career (after you’ve finished your work of course!). To us, she’s a bit of a lacrosse expert and can even tell you where you can give the game a go, once social distancing is all over.
