Westhampton Beach Midfielder Reese King Commits to the University of North Carolina

Reese King was only in elementary school when the Westhampton Beach lacrosse star revealed she was determined to compete at the collegiate level. But she didn’t have her sights set on just any school, the Hurricanes junior midfielder aimed high, with a target landing spot of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Last month, King’s dream became a reality as she announced her commitment to the NCAA Division I Tar Heels.

“I’ve wanted to play college lacrosse as long as I can remember, so finally accomplishing what I have wanted to do for years is so surreal and exciting,” King said. “I grew up watching many college lacrosse games, especially UNC’s, and I looked up to a lot of those players.”

But there was another one, more locally, that really motivated King to continue to reach for the stars, and that was Westhampton Beach three-sport standout Belle Smith. The Boston College senior was a four-time Under Armour and two-time USA Lacrosse All-American who was the No. 1 midfielder and No. 2 recruit on Inside Lacrosse. Smith competed in the NCAA championship game all three years, winning the title as a freshman. Her Eagles even fell to the Tar Heels, 12-11, in a 2022 season finale thriller.

“Seeing her commit to BC, kill it in high school and play for Team USA inspired me to be just like her,” King said. “I’ve learned so much from the girls before me. To realize what has finally happened after all of these years leading up to it is crazy, and I am so, so grateful for this incredible opportunity.”

Smith said she trained King several times growing up, and had the opportunity to watch her play during college breaks.

“It’s been a joy watching her grow into the person and player she is,” she said of King. “She’s skillful, she’s a leader, she’s smart and she’s passionate about the sport. It will take her to extreme heights and I can’t wait to follow her career journey.”

Like Smith, Westhampton Beach junior had also played multiple sports, competing for the varsity basketball and junior varsity volleyball teams as a freshman, but opted to focus on lacrosse full-time going into her sophomore year. That’s also when King began a program at Bohemia-based Revolution Athletics, a speed, strength and agility training center.

“I loved playing other sports, but I truly believe this changed me as an athlete and prepared me so well for my recruiting summer,” King said. “I would definitely not have gotten to this point without them.”

The midfielder takes the trek out west four-to-five days a week up until lacrosse season, completing two-and-a-half hours of workouts and lacrosse-specific training alongside Hurricane teammates Ava Derby and Brie Provenzano, and members of her Yellow Jackets club travel team. The hours are long, but she said despite getting home at 7 p.m. each night, she knows it’s all worth it.

“I go there every day knowing it’s making me a better player, which excites me,” King said. “And I could clearly see my improvement. I’ve gotten so much faster and stronger, and my footwork has improved tremendously.”

Head trainer Golden Ukonu, a former NFL guard for the Tennessee Titans organization, said King laughs when comparing her performance level now to where it was last year.

“She was already good, but she’s found another level to her success,” Ukonu said entering his second offseason of college-level training with her, adding King begins with lifting and other workouts before transitioning to acceleration, footwork and change of direction and then dodging and shooting in those fatigued situations. “I throw the athletes tough workouts, and she wasn’t intimidated. She crushed them. She came in smiling and ready to work. And her progress shot through the roof. She’s a taller girl than most, and you would think that it’s challenging for her to be athletic, but she moves just as fluent as a girl half her size. She’s getting more and more comfortable. She’s a special athlete. The sky’s the limit for her.”

They were improvements she was able to show off during game-situation skill drills and scrimmages as part of three UNC lacrosse prospect camps hosted by the Tar Heels coaches and players. While the junior knows she’s seen improvement, King admitted she was still in her head about standing out.

“It’s hard to show yourself because of how many girls are there, but I really wanted to show them that I wanted to be there and was interested in their school,” King said. “And although I already had in my mind I wanted to go there, once stepping foot on the campus, there were really no negatives — everything was just so amazing. The coaches are so, so nice and have the best experience in the game.”

Head Coach Jenny Levy has been with the team since its inception in 1996, and has led the women’s lacrosse team to seven regular season and seven Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championships, 24 NCAA tournament appearances, 13 final four appearances, five national championship appearances and three titles.

“The program has grown so much in the past few years, and it’s only continuing to grow,” King said. “All of the sports are so valued there, and I loved the college-town feel. The visit was the most surreal part. The campus is so pretty, and it’s the perfect size. The people, the campus, the sports and the academics. The choice just seemed obvious.”

While athletics media relations Associate Director Chandler Brandes said Levy could not comment on King as she is a high school junior, citing NCAA rules for all sports that “the institution may not comment generally about the prospective student-athlete’s ability or the contribution that the prospective student-athlete might make to the institution’s team; further, the institution is precluded from commenting in any manner as to the likelihood of the prospective student-athlete committing to or signing with that institution,” Westhampton Beach head coach Mary Bergmann said she has a pretty good idea why her draw specialist was scouted and recruited.

“Every school that wanted Reese saw a player that is dangerous in the draw circle and on the attacking end,” the coach said. “Reese can do it all, so schools saw a player that could benefit them in multiple ways. Her flexibility is such a great asset for a team to have.”

The junior’s father, Rich King, saw some important qualities himself — qualities that propelled his daughter to 100 career points last April, and also helped her Hurricanes to their first Suffolk County and Long Island championship titles in program history her freshman year.

“Reese is a very diligent and hardworking kid,” he said. “She made a decision years ago that she wanted to play lacrosse at the highest level, and now she is following through on it. Her level of commitment is something that stands out. Reese has also been very fortunate to be surrounded by so many supportive people. She has awesome coaches, trainers and teammates. Without them she wouldn’t be where she is today.”

His daughter feels similarly.

“Having teammates around me that are thinking the same way and want to improve to get to the next level is great,” King said. “I’ve really learned to work hard each and every day and not take anything for granted.”

But lacrosse is also something she felt she picked up on rather quickly, taking part in clinics since kindergarten and beginning competition at the PAL level. She worked her way up to earn a varsity spot as an eighth-grader. This past summer, she took part in showcase tournaments for the Yellow Jackets, with the team finishing top-ranked in the country for the 2025 class. King even competed with the New Balance All-America Underclassmen Lacrosse Long Island team that won the national championship in July, avenging a 2022 loss to Baltimore in the title game.

“I truly just love playing,” King said. “It’s been a great distraction from the stress of school and it’s always kept me determined to be successful, both on the field and in the classroom. I’ve met so many amazing people, including some of my best friends playing lacrosse, which has made it even better.”

Like junior goalkeeper Maya Farnan, whom she’s been contending alongside since she was 5 years old. The longtime friend wrote a congratulatory post on her Instagram page highlighting what she saw as King’s most important qualities.

“Your hard work and passion for everything is so admirable,” Farnan wrote. “When I say you deserve everything in the world and more, I mean it. You inspire me, even on the days that you claim you can’t shoot (it’s never true because you can somehow always score on me). Your love for lacrosse, your teammates and everyone around you is truly beautiful. The skill and lacrosse IQ you have will always always always wow me. I am writing this with tears of joy and pride rolling down my face. You continue to amaze me more and more every day. From the early PAL days, to winning an LIC together, I love you.”

Bergmann said what’s also impressed her about King is what she did even after receiving a text message from UNC at midnight on September 1 highlighting their interest and looking to set up an official visit.

“Reese is the epitome of chasing down dreams, but what makes me most proud with Reese is that even though her dream school called her, she openly listened to everyone that wanted to make her an offer,” the coach said. “She visited numerous schools and really weighed the pros and cons. UNC was the perfect fit for her, and after all of the time and effort she put in Reese found a school that fit her athletic and academic needs, and that’s what we always hoped for.”

Her father said he and his wife, Kerri, couldn’t be more excited for their daughter’s next chapter.

“UNC has the perfect mix of great academics and high-level lacrosse,” Rich King said. “We definitely feel a sense of pride when she is out there competing with so many great players. Just watching what she and her teammates do is always fun for us. As parents, we are thrilled that she’s found a passion, set goals and is achieving them.”