UMBC women’s lacrosse senior Ella Killian recently chatted with PressBox about what made her high school coach so special, winning draws and more. The 5-foot-2 defender picked up 24 ground balls, caused 12 turnovers and won 71 draws for the Retrievers in 2025. Killian is a native of Annapolis and graduate of Broadneck High School.
PressBox: How did you first become interested in lacrosse?
Ella Killian: I became interested in lacrosse at a very young age. I would say probably when I was about 5 I picked up my first lacrosse stick. I had a sister who was three years older than me, so I was definitely around the lacrosse world a lot as a younger sister being dragged to all the games and stuff. I started with rec. As the years went on, they didn’t have any younger teams for me at first, and then finally when they had younger club teams we were like, “Absolutely, let’s get into that.” Obviously, Maryland is a huge lacrosse [hotbed]. I feel like it was always around me — that and soccer and field hockey. I was very drawn to that.
PB: Who was the biggest influence on your game growing up?
EK: I will say I’m a little basic. I looked up to a lot of Maryland girls like Taylor Cummings and Caroline Steele, those big names. I knew I wanted to do something big with it, but I just didn’t know to what extent and that was before the college stuff and how you’re going to get recruited and stuff like that. Definitely I would say Taylor Cummings. Obviously, my dad [Shawn] had a huge influence on me. He was basically my coach who was never actually my coach. I listened to him. He was really able to coach me through things that maybe an actual coach wasn’t able to do at the time, so that was really beneficial.
PB: What are your favorite memories from playing at Broadneck?
EK: Winning the [Class 4A] state championship two years in a row, beating Severna Park three times in one season and Senior Day for Broadneck. Those were all very, very, very awesome and surreal feelings, to be honest.
PB: How surprised were you when Katy Kelley stepped down as head coach last spring following her fifth straight state title?
EK: I was surprised but not surprised because she’s been there for 25 years and has five rings under her belt. You can risk it and hopefully get another one or you can call it at [five] and pursue other dreams. I also know that she has kids that are in college, so [she is] able to see those games when maybe [she wasn’t] able to because of [her] high school lacrosse season. Honestly, it was an awesome thing for her to do and for her to get [2024-25 NFHS National Girls’ Lacrosse] Coach of the Year, it’s unbelievable.
PB: What was Kelley’s secret sauce all those years?
EK: I would just say her coaching style. She is able to be personable with you and also is able to tell you what you need to do when you need to do it. She’s not afraid to tell you, “Hey, you need to run a little bit faster. Hey, you need to get on the wall.” She was a very honest coach. She helped me improved my game a lot and be more confident in myself with my speed, my skill, all those things like that. She made me feel proud of what I was doing and know that I can accomplish anything that I really want to.
PB: Why did you choose to go to UMBC?
EK: Obviously, it’s close to home. I live in Annapolis. It’s about 30 minutes away, so that’s a plus. Honestly, my best friend Alexis Abe committed here before me. [UMBC head coach Amy Slade] came to our state championship game my junior year. She was like, “Oh my gosh, I love her. I need to meet her.” Through that, we kind of started chit chat. Once I met Amy and [assistant coach Morgan Stephens] in person, I just felt like I really clicked with them. They really made you feel like you were at home. Obviously, my recruiting process was a little bit weird because of COVID and all that, so I wasn’t able to necessarily meet the team. But from what I had heard from Alexis and other people there, I knew it was a very homey feeling. They were all welcoming you with open arms. The coaches just made me feel like I was their daughter, so it was awesome.
PB: What are your favorite memories so far at UMBC?
EK: Like I said for Broadneck, all the Senior Days are just so awesome, being able to celebrate the girls that are your leaders, the girls that have been here for four years. Now to be a senior and be in that position, it’s a cool feeling. You never thought you would really get here. Also beating Albany, beating Bryant, beating Binghamton — basically beating anybody in the conference is honestly just an awesome feeling. When we beat Albany, [12-11, in 2024], booya, that was just so awesome.
PB: Have you always helped out on draws even though you’re a defender? Is that common in women’s lacrosse?
EK: It is very common for defenders to be in the circle game. I kind of went back and forth with my position. In high school and in club, I went middie-defense-middie-defense. I’ve always been on the circle, but it was just whether we wanted me to go on both sides or me to go on one side. I think in high school we realized that I looked more comfortable just playing defense. I’m a very scrappy player, so being able to get that possession for our team in a fair, gritty fight is an awesome feeling. All those possessions that you get, those little possessions turn into goals. I got one of my assists from a draw.
PB: What’s your favorite way to try to win a draw?
EK: I like to be first and fast, F&F. I like to get the first step off. It’s really important to get that leading foot in front of the [opponent] and just box her out. Sometimes all my job is, is to box out the girl in the circle — being able to do that and use my strength and my power to make sure that they don’t get around me. All the other girls on the circle help me a lot also because it’s basically a 3v3. You can’t do anything until one person gets the ball. It just becomes really scrappy in the best way possible. So just kind of communicating with your teammates and getting to the ball first, that’s what I do.
PB: Who’s your best friend on the team and what’s a story that underscores your friendship?
EK: I have two best friends, Lizzie Bateman and Courtney Devilbiss. Courtney was my freshman year roommate. We clicked from Day 1. It’s kind of like opposites attract. We are not very similar, but I love her with all my heart. Lizzie is another senior. When we were freshmen, she would come down to our dorm. All three of us would hang out in the dorm for hours and hours and hours. We just kind of got that bond — also from the bus rides and the team dinners and the hotels and all that stuff. You really become close to people that you may not even think you would become close with. That connects you in a way that you can’t really explain to other people.
PB: Who’s a player you looked up to when you first got to UMBC?
EK: Kennedy Evans. She was our star defender. She just was so gritty and so passionate about her play. I love lacrosse so much, and to be other people who love lacrosse just as much as you do made me want to play just like her. I think she has done a really good job at influencing me, whether [it was] as a player and she was coaching me when I was a little sophomore on the field to now, she’s obviously [an] assistant coach here. … She knows what she’s doing and it doesn’t take much explanation for her to explain what she’s doing.
PB: What advice would you give to younger players going through the recruiting process?
EK: Be yourself. Try not to be anxious. Try not to let the pressures from family and friends and coaches have an influence [in a negative way]. Recruiting, honestly, should be fun. You are still getting to play with all of your club teammates. You’re getting an awesome opportunity that not all people [get]. And also it’s really important to remember that the division of the school doesn’t matter. It matters if the school is right for you. That is so important in the recruiting process.
PB: What are your goals for after lacrosse?
EK: I have a couple. I would love to do some college coaching. I really like the idea of strength training and strength coaching and then also substitute teaching within Anne Arundel County and then coaching within the county. We’re still up for decisions, but those are my three main goals after.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of UMBC Athletics
Issue 297: February / March 2026
Originally published Feb. 18, 2026