Derek Lucier, a senior at Lakes High School, has been a good athlete for the Lakes baseball team since 2020. The outfielder has been a four-year varsity athlete. With him being a varsity athlete for so long one of his qualities that stands out is being responsible and a leader. Being a senior athlete requires playing at a high level and being treated at a different standard.

Lucier has demonstrated great leadership as a player and has been a vital player for the squad. He has learned a lot from former alumni players, which helped him become a role model.

“I just drew a lot of [different bonds] than what other people had, especially with the coaches and stuff. I was just around the varsity level a lot of the time. I think it made me a lot better. So all offseason we’d be lifting with these guys and I would kind of set myself to the standard of trying to be close to where they were as a sophomore” said Lucier.

Lucier has put up some impressive stats in his career. In his sophomore year, he was third in the conference for most runs (23) and he hit .353. However, his leadership qualities stand out the most. Those features about him should be talked about more. Being a leader is not for everyone, but Lucier is one of those guys people can get behind.

“He really brings the energy to our entire team, sets the tone on offense, and sells out on defense. He’s a very vocal leader and lets us know what we have to do. He is out there telling underclassmen where to go,” said senior shortstop Jaden Jackson.

The team has faced some tough regional losses over the years, and Lucier is hard on the team because he knows they can win a regional championship and get over the hump. Lucier sophomore year, the eagles lost to Crystal Lake South 3-0 in regionals. Lakes would play the same team the following year regionals the 2022-2023 season and lose a tough one 4-3.

Losing back to back to Crystal Lake South has been a source of motivation for him and the team.“I have high expectations. We have a lot of seniors and we came off a decent year last year and we have a lot of sophomores that we should hopefully carry their weight and help us get wins. I think we will be really good this year,” said Lucier.

Lucier’s experience of playing Baseball has taught him a lot in his mental resilience and not giving up, which has also helped him in school. “You know the game has taught me a lot [you] have to be really mentally resilient when you kind of get in like tough spots and I think that helps me with like an outlook on school and just kind of life in general because like not everything goes your way and everything like it gets hard sometimes you just kind of have to stick through it,” said Lucier.

Overall, Derek Lucier’s leadership and sportsmanship qualities have been key to the Lakes baseball program. He has been a 4-year varsity player, producing great stats and motivating others. Lucier has been taught valuable lessons from baseball and will continue to use those lessons outside of baseball.