Greyhound Summer Spotlight: Maia Machado '27

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – This week's Summer Spotlight series is with field hockey/women's lacrosse student-athlete Maia Machaco.

Where are you studying/traveling this summer?

• I traveled to Portugal to play on the Portuguese women's national lacrosse team. 

Please describe your trip.

• I had an incredible opportunity to represent Portugal at sixes and Algarve and the Lisboa Cup. I also went on a side trip to Spain and Porto to visit some of my family. I love Portuguese food and the "festas".

What made this experience appealing to you?

• I really wanted to play and represent the country my family is from. The team was composed of Portuguese lacrosse players from Australia, Portugal, Canada, the United States, and the UK. It was an amazing experience and helped me make long lasting friends.

How does this experience relate to your career or life aspirations? What are you looking to personally get out of it?

• I am planning on continuing to play for team Portugal and eventually our goal is to make qualifiers for the Olympics. Our goal is to make lacrosse more known throughout Portugal and to grow the program overseas.

How has your athletics career prepared you for this role?

• Being a dual sport athlete at Moravian this year has prepared me for a more intense level of play. Both my field hockey and lacrosse coaches have been very supportive and prepared me through this process. Coach Lexi and Coach Sammy were coaching the USA team. We played them and it will be an experience I will never forget. 

What are you looking forward to for this upcoming year for your sport?

• I'm excited to meet all the new girls coming in and seeing all my teammates. I hope that we get farther into playoffs and maybe even win our conference.

Is there anything else you are looking forward to this summer outside of this experience?

• Once I get back home I leave to coach for Ultimate Defender in New York. It's a huge goalie camp for field hockey. I will be coaching and training with people from all over the country. This is going to be my second year and I'm so excited to see everyone again.