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OCTOBER 2021 27 BY MELISSA DUDEK F ourth-year striker Peyton Tollaksen takes a great deal of pride in wearing the word Virginia on her jersey. For her, the term has an even deeper meaning than just the tremendous pride she takes in repre- senting the University. She is also a Virginia girl, through and through. Tollaksen was born in Chesapeake to Vir- ginia natives Diana and David Tollaksen. The family ties to the Commonwealth go back even further. "I graduated from Great Bridge High," Tollaksen said. "As did my mom, my two aunts and my grandma." Tollaksen's first love was ballet, and her first collegiate fandom was Old Dominion football, making her path to being the lead- ing scorer on the UVA field hockey team a winding one. Though the Chesapeake/Vir- ginia Beach area has recently become a field hockey hot spot, there were only two club teams in the region when she started playing. Luckily, her middle school had a team, and Tollaksen decided to give the sport a go. "I started field hockey in sixth grade when I tried out for the middle school team. I was awful," she recalled. "I'm very glad that I made it because I didn't think that I would. I started playing club in mid- dle school, and then after that I tried out for the high school team. That's when I got really serious." Her decision to get "really serious" about her sport led to playing Futures with USA Field Hockey and honing her skills. She was named the Group 4A Virginia State Player of the Year both her junior and senior seasons in high school. As a junior, she set the state's scoring record with 53 goals. "One memorable experience for me as a Cavalier was during my first year when my high school team came to watch a road game at ODU," Tollaksen said. "I had my teammates on my side here at UVA, and then also I saw my old teammates in the stands. I realized I really had my dreams come true. I've dreamed of this since I started playing field hockey. "I told my mom that I would only go to UVA, and she was like, 'I think we should look other places.' I said, 'No, I'm going to come to UVA, and I'm going to play field hockey.' It's an incredible experience to be able to complete that dream and have that full-circle moment." Another memorable experience hap- pened earlier this season during a road game at William & Mary. She found herself on the field matched up one-on-one against the Tribe's No. 26, Alyssa Tollaksen, her younger sister. "We knew this was coming, that we would be playing each other twice this season, so we bantered all summer," Tollaksen said. "She plays defense. I play offense, so we knew that there was a moment in the game that we would probably be against each other. My mom and dad were ready for it. My mom bought a big camera to take a pic- ture of the two of us together. "But it was so cool because we were just talking on the field like normal, and then we'd be like, 'Oh wait, we're in the middle of a game.' The moment I stepped on the field and saw her, I got so proud of her. She's worked so hard. She's a freshman, so she has a lot to grow on, but it was so cool to be able to see her on the field, see her get touches and also see her on the other team, where I could go against her and score." When Tollaksen had zeroed in on Virginia as her college of choice, it wasn't just about field hockey. She has another dream that she knew this University could help her realize. "I'm really interested in reproductive jus- tice, and my end goal is to be fighting for the rights of women all around the country and the world," she explained. Tollaksen is majoring in foreign affairs with a minor in women's gender and sexual- ity. She eventually wants to go to law school and become a prosecuting attorney, working on cases involving human trafficking, espe- cially sex trafficking. Looking to help achieve that goal, she signed up for the Virginia Alumni Mentoring (VAM) program. VAM is a virtual community that fosters relationships between UVA alumni and students. The alums share their knowledge and experience to help current students make the most of their time on Grounds, and explore and prepare for life and their career after. Through the program, Tollaksen connected with Alex Blanchard (B.A. 2007, J.D. 2011), an assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern Dis- trict of Virginia. The two will meet throughout the year, with Tollaksen able to ask advice about what pathway to take to reach her goals and the next steps of the process. In the interim, Tollaksen concentrates on making the most of her fourth year on the blue pitch at Turf Field. "Last year was re- ally hard for a lot of athletes and a lot of teams, and it was hard to really grow with your teammates," Tollaksen said. "I think this year we're getting the opportunity to get to know our first-years, even our second-years. "I think our team chemistry allows us to be really good on and off the field. And our team chemistry has always been good since my first year, like when we had solid fourth- years, and they were really welcoming. I think continuing that has led to a strong sense of family on the team, and I think that is allowing us to be great this season." HOME-STATE HOME-STATE HERO HERO Virginia's All-Time Leading Prep Scorer Peyton Tollaksen Continues To Thrive At UVA " I told my mom that I would only go to UVA, and she was like, 'I think we should look other places.' I said, 'No, I'm going to come to UVA, and I'm going to play field hockey.' It's an incredible experience to be able to complete that dream." PEYTON TOLLAKSEN