Maryland women’s lacrosse graduate student Abby Bosco recently chatted with PressBox about playing for her late father, her decision to transfer to Maryland and more. The 5-foot-3 defender posted 63 ground balls, 26 caused turnovers and 89 draw controls for the Terps in 2022 en route to Big Ten Defender of the Year honors. Bosco played at Penn from 2018-2021 prior to transferring to Maryland. She is a native of Suffern, N.Y., and graduate of Suffern High School.
PressBox: How did you become interested in lacrosse?
Abby Bosco: I think it comes from the area I grew up in. Suffern, N.Y., has been such a hotbed of lacrosse, so since I was literally 4 years old I had a stick in my hand with our youth program. I’m so grateful that my parents let me try it out because I fell in love with it from the second I started.
PB: Who were the big influences on your game growing up?
AB: I would say definitely in high school those were the prime years where Taylor Cummings was in college — Taylor, Nadine [Hadnagy], Alice [Mercer], all those girls were in their prime when I was a freshman, sophomore, junior in high school, so it was really cool to watch them play. Never did I think that I would one day be wearing the uniform that they wore. … My JV high school lacrosse coach — and rest his soul, he passed away suddenly a couple years back — was kind of that first coach that really believed in me and instilled confidence in me to do certain things on the field that I didn’t have confidence in before. I think if it weren’t for him really believing and kind of rooting for me and being like that backseat fan in my varsity years, I don’t think I would be where I am today. His name is Mickey DeSimone.
PB: Having lost your father, Rich Bosco, in the World Trade Center attacks on 9/11, is it special for you to not only play for Maryland but play for the Bosco family name? Do you play for your dad?
AB: Absolutely. I always wear a piece of white tape on my wrist, and actually on the inside of it are his initials. Every time I’m lining up for a draw or something bad is going on in the game or a bad play, it’s time for a reset. Even sometimes when the momentum is in our favor, [I keep] myself grounded. I always just kind of twirl my stick, look at my wrist, see his initials and it kind of feels like he’s smiling down on me and telling me everything’s going to be OK and just that he’s proud. Definitely every single game day I feel like he’s there with me.
PB: Do you have any recollection of him?
AB: Not many, unfortunately. I was so young when he passed away. I was only 2. I don’t know if this story a recollection because people have told me it or if I really remember it, but as a little kid you want to be your parents growing up. He would always shave his face in the morning. He worked in finance at Citibank, so he’d have to have a freshly shaved face. And of course, I would want to do it with him, so my parents bought me a little toy razor — obviously fake. When he would shave his face, I would sit next to him on the counter and do the same thing. Honestly, I don’t really have any other recollections, but as the years have gone on, a ton of people have reached out telling me stories. A lot of people have described him as spitfire, always going, lots of energy, always positive. Those are the traits that I like to say live out in me that I got from him and my mom as well.
PB: What’s the story behind the Rich Bosco Memorial Basketball Tournament? How often have you played in it?
AB: My parents both went to Suffern High School. I went to Suffern High School. My brother went to Suffern High School. The year after he passed, the basketball team decided to do something in his honor. There’s a scholarship fund, so my grandparents are able to give money to graduating seniors every year through the fundraising of this tournament and also we do a golf outing. But we started just to honor his memory. It’s been going ever since then. I think for five years I played in it, and then my junior year and my brother’s senior year of high school, it turned into a girls’ and boys’ tournament and we both played in it together. Obviously separate teams, but we were both playing in it.
PB: What did that mean to you?
AB: Oh my gosh, that’s just a memory that I won’t forget. It was one of those moments where you’re like, “This is more than a game, for sure.” Our whole family came out for it, and I remember that year we actually won the tournament so I got to collect the trophy from my grandpa. I’ll never forget that embrace that we had at half-court. It’s so special, his memory living on and people remembering him.
PB: Why did you choose to transfer to Maryland from Penn?
AB: [In February] of my senior year at Penn [in 2021], we found out that our second season was getting canceled. I was kind of fine with it. I was going to play my senior year at Penn, and I had a job lined up. I had signed an offer letter in New York City and I was like, “All right, I’m going to play one last season and then I’m going to go into the real world.” And then when they canceled that season … I worked my entire life to play four years of collegiate lacrosse. I can’t accept that I only got two out of this. That’s when I was like, “You know what, I need to go somewhere else.” There’s a lot of rules and regulations at the [Ivy League schools]. It’s pretty hard to extend your stay there. They don’t really allow graduate students to and it wastes a lot of money, just a list of reasons. I didn’t, at the time, it wasn’t much of an option [to stay]. And so I was like, “You know what, I’m going to put my name in the transfer portal,” and my coaches were super supportive. Obviously they’re like, “We want you to play more.”
I was still super passionate about the game. I still am. I’m not burned out yet. I put my name in the portal, which at that time these other schools were in preseason, gearing up to play. They’re focused on other things. But I would say around February or March I started talking to a few schools, and I had a call with [Terps coaches Cathy Reese, Lauri Kenis and Caitlyn Phipps]. It takes me a really long time to make decisions. I evaluate every single pro, every single con. So I’m deciding where to go to college, this is going to be a very hard decision for me. I remember hanging up the phone and literally texting my mom and calling her right away being like, “I know where I’m going. Done deal, I don’t care. I don’t need to talk to anyone else. I’m going here. I’m coming here.” It’s just the way that they made me feel so at home, like I had known them for years and just how passionate they are about the sport and their team. And also just the fun that they brought to that phone call, I was like, “This is exactly what I want.” Coupled with the fact that I’m playing for the most historic program around, it’s literally like my little girl dream inside of me come true. It’s unreal.
PB: What’s your favorite memory at Maryland so far?
AB: Obviously we would have loved to have won the national championship, but it was such a fun year. I would say my best memory would probably be beating Northwestern in the regular season to clinch the Big Ten regular season, and then also when we beat Rutgers in the Big Ten championship. Those are just really fun because all that hard work that you put in with your best friends, to see embraces after the game, you’re like, “We did this.”
PB: What did it mean to you to win Big Ten Defender of the Year?
AB: Honestly, it’s so nice and everything, but it’s really a team award. I would not have gotten that award if the other six players around me and Emily Sterling behind me. I think that it’s great and it’s nice, but we got Big Ten Defense of the Year.
PB: You scooped up 63 ground balls last year. Is there an art to that? Did any coach along the way teach you how to go about that?
AB: I see the ball and I’m like, “I’m getting this. I want this. I’m going to do anything in my power to go and get it.” I guess I can honestly credit it to my older brother, [Richie], tossing me around playing sports, never taking it easy on me. I knew I was [shorter] than him, I knew I was weaker than him, but I was going to do everything in my power to beat him.
PB: What’s your favorite thing about College Park?
AB: I would say just the team is my favorite thing about College Park, getting to hang out with the team every day and doing everything. The culture is truly unmatched. What Cathy has created at Maryland, I can’t even put it into words. It’s unbelievable.
PB: Who was a player you looked up to when you first got to Penn?
AB: When I got to Penn, the first player I looked up to was Erin Barry. She was only a year older than me, actually, but she was just phenomenal all-around and just a workhorse. She was one of the best players on our team but also would be putting in extra work, doing extra runs. After every single game you were like, “She put her body on the line for the team today.” That’s what you want everyone to see. Every single practice, every single game, every single moment she was on the field, she left it all out there.
PB: What advice do you have for younger players who are going through the recruiting process?
AB: I think that COVID shed a lot of light on this for me. My advice to them would be don’t put any pressure on yourself, have fun and enjoy every moment but also don’t take any second that you’re on the field for granted. You get to be on the field. It’s a privilege. Enjoy it and make the most of every single second.
PB: What are your goals for after lacrosse?
AB: Hopefully just get a good job with the education I’ve done and get a job that I’m passionate about.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Maryland Athletics
Issue 279: February/March 2023
Originally published Feb. 15, 2023