It's rare to have identical twins, and even rarer for both to be talented Division I athletes, but that is exactly the case for two members of the Binghamton women's lacrosse team. Since coming to Binghamton in 2016, seniors Alexa Franze and Alissa Franze have been standouts on and off the field for the Bearcats. Both had high expectations for themselves and their team in the 2020 season.

On March 11, the Bearcats picked up a decisive win over Colgate, earning their second-consecutive victory and putting the team's momentum at a season-high level. However, 24 hours later, it all came to a screeching halt. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all America East competition was canceled for the remainder of the year. For the Franzes, their senior seasons came to an unexpected conclusion.

"It just kinda all came at once," Alissa said. "It wasn't just lacrosse ending, it was my senior year ending. All my friends were going to be going home, whatever fun thing or fun team practice we had, we didn't even know but that was the last one."

While the twins had planned to leave it all on the field in their final year of college lacrosse, they were now faced with an unprecedented situation amid a global crisis. 


Coming together as a team
On March 12, fans watched in shock as all North American sports came to an indefinite suspension due to the ongoing pandemic. The women's lacrosse players had been given the day off from practice after beating Colgate the previous day, but ultimately dealt with the situation as a team.

Alexa spent the morning in the training room, watching SportsCenter as every conference in the country canceled their basketball championships. Throughout the day, leagues and schools around the country perpetually suspended all remaining athletics activities for the semester.

"It was a lot to process." Alexa said. "I was holding onto that little hope that we would still be playing, kinda just refusing to believe it was coming. I was trying to not react until I knew anything for certain."

Alissa had been conversing with several other student-athletes as the news intensified throughout the day and had a slightly more cynical approach to the situation than her sister.

"I kinda felt like I knew it was gonna happen," Alissa said. "I had been hearing from word of mouth from my friends that play at different colleges … I was kinda anticipating it but I was really hoping that it didn't happen."

In the early evening, the America East officially announced that all athletics competitions and practices were canceled for the remainder of the academic year. Faced with an unprecedented situation, the close-knit team came together to get through arguably the greatest challenge of their athletics careers.

"A bunch of us live together, so for the most part people who weren't in class were hanging out in the living room talking about how sad we were," Alexa said. "We tried to have all the seniors there and we went around; we were in a circle and we told each other what we're most thankful for with this group of girls."

In a matter of a day, the team went from a high level of momentum to a complete stop, creating a great deal of uncertainty for the players, especially the Franzes and their senior class.

"It was a quick turnaround from our game, to having a day off, to finding out our senior year was over, and people's parents immediately wanting them home," Alissa said. "Those few hours we had to grieve our loss we spent together."



Two of a kind
In a situation as unimaginable as what the lacrosse players were facing, there is no perfect way to cope with the grief. However, for the Franzes, having a twin sister going through the exact same emotions undoubtedly helped each other get through it.

"It's really hard to describe what it's like having a twin because I've known nothing different, but she's always there," Alexa said. "It's the same thing as having a best friend but it's also different because she's on my wavelength and she knows exactly how I'm feeling or what I'm going to feel like."

The Glenville, New York natives have been teammates on almost any team either has played on. The pair had success playing lacrosse at Niskayuna High School, eventually committing together to play at Binghamton. Alissa was the first to consider BU, knowing from the beginning that she wanted to attend college with her sister.

"I've always said that I knew I wanted to go to college with Alexa," Alissa said. "I definitely wanted Alexa to be with me since I knew it was gonna be hard at times … It's just like always having a little piece of home with you and it's so comforting at times."

Off the field, the pair have distinct personalities, but facing nearly the same circumstances for their entire lives, both have had similar successes and faced similar challenges throughout their athletics careers.

"We can both relate on so many notes, like having our senior years taken away and going through injuries," Alissa said. "Having her there throughout those as well was something that motivated me. I know that we are both motivated by each other's hard work ethic to keep going and get through it."

On the field, the pair played different roles on the team. Alexa was a starting defender, earning second-team all-conference recognition in 2018. Alissa, a midfielder, was fifth on the team with 12 goals last season. 

After making it through a challenging four years of high school or college as a student-athlete, every player looks forward to being recognized at their senior day. This year's college senior day won't happen due to the cancellations, and it isn't the first time the Franzes have missed out. Both were unable to play on their high school senior day due to injuries.

"Alexa and I were both injured for our high school lacrosse senior night," Alissa said. "We were looking forward to having a college senior day … It just felt all too familiar, not a lot of athletes can say that they didn't participate in their senior year of high school and then they also didn't participate in their senior year of college."



Laying a foundation for the future
For Binghamton's seven-member senior class, the abrupt end to the season may mean the end of their lacrosse careers. The NCAA did agree to grant spring student-athletes an additional year of eligibility, however, deciding whether or not to come back for a fifth year is a difficult decision for seniors that had planned their education and professional careers around graduating this semester.

While Alexa, Alissa and the rest of their classmates are uncertain as to what their future holds, one thing is clear. In the limited time this team had to play together, the leadership of this year's senior class established an outstanding culture on the team, fostering an inclusive environment that was felt by all of the players.

"Our freshman year, we had seniors that took us under their wings," Alissa said. "We were so close to them and we felt like we were wanted on the team. It's not often freshmen feel like that, but I know the freshman felt like that this year."

The sisters recognized those seniors, specifically former Bearcat Brianne Arthur, '18, for creating an inclusive culture that they tried to emulate.

"It was easy for us on the lacrosse field to be good with each other and connect, but we wanted to make an effort to include everyone outside of the lacrosse field," Alexa said. "Our aim this year was to make the freshman feel like we felt."

With their graduations imminent, both sisters expressed gratitude towards the current state of the program. They know that if this is the end of their Binghamton careers, they made a mark on the program, on and off the field.

"If it had to end, I wouldn't want it to have ended with any other group of girls," Alexa said. "This team, this year, had just been so different. Leaving, knowing that we had such a close knit team that had such a good culture and energy, it's comforting knowing that you're leaving your team in a good place."