Women's Lacrosse | 3/25/2019 6:27:00 AM

MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The Green Machine will sport a little red, white and blue this summer, as two members of the Robert Morris University women's lacrosse team will represent Team Ireland at the 2019 European Championship.

As announced earlier this month, RMU junior midfielder Clio Kerr and assistant coach Cacki Helmer will don green and orange in Israel from July 16-25, with Helmer leading the senior national team for the first time and the 20-year-old Kerr serving as one of the youngest players on the squad.

"What an amazing opportunity that they get to go and represent the country of their heritage," RMU head coach Katrina Silva said. "These are special and precious moments that they will both enjoy, but also gain confidence from."

Kerr, whose full first name Cliodhna is derived from Irish mythology, was eligible for the team due to her father's being born in Ireland. The Colonials' all-around contributor -- she ranks first on the team in draw controls, second in caused turnovers and third in ground balls -- made through two sets of tryouts to qualify for the European Championship roster, with the first occurring last summer in New York and the second round over winter break in Dublin.

Making it more difficult was this: Rules of the tournament limited the number of American residents on the squad to nine. The Maryland-raised Kerr called the tryout process "tough," but one in which she felt she belonged.

"Some of the girls were really good," Kerr said, not long after hearing the good news from Dublin. "I thought I did OK. I felt like I held my own. A lot of them are 26 or 27 (years old) and have played at bigger schools. I was like, 'Alright, I'll take an alternate spot if I can get it.' "

Instead, Kerr found out she had made the 26-player roster with no caveats. She'll be slotted as an attacking midfielder for Team Ireland, to be deployed at the discretion of Helmer, who is in her first season as an RMU assistant coach.

"This is the first time I've had the opportunity to coach one of my Ireland players during a collegiate season, and it has been a great experience," Helmer said. "I'm able to see (Kerr's) growth and preparation firsthand, and her play with RMU has given me confidence that she will be a important contributor to our Ireland program."

Kerr said this accomplishment seems a bit surreal. She tried out for the senior national team because of the encouragement of former RMU assistant coach Eileen Ghent, who coaches Ireland's under-19 national squad. Once Helmer joined the Colonials last summer, she kept pushing Kerr in similar fashion. Now, Kerr will be one of six Irish players making her international debut.

(Since Team Ireland is a player-funded organization, each player must cover her own costs, including transportation, food, accommodation, uniforms and equipment. The organization has set up a donation page here.)

"I've known (playing for Ireland) was possible since I was 10," Kerr said, "but I always thought it would be something I'd do after I graduated college. ... It's a really cool situation."
   

The same description could be applied to Helmer's spot as Ireland bench boss. The former all-Ivy League defender at Cornell got into the Irish mix while coaching high school lacrosse at St. Stephen's and St. Agnes School in Alexandria, Virginia.

Former Irish national player Sarah Walsh was on Helmer's staff at that powerhouse program, so when the call went out from Dublin for coaching help in 2014, Walsh handpicked Helmer as an assistant. Helmer was on the Ireland staff for the 2015 European Championship and the 2017 World Cup, but this year is her first in charge.

"Right place at the right time," Helmer said. "I have a lot of Irish blood in my family, so it felt like the right move to join in."

Helmer, who recently spoke to the Lax Sports Network about growing the game in Ireland, will hope to build upon the nation's fifth-place finish at the previous European Championship. She said she was "thrilled and honored" to get the assignment, one in which she'll have familiar support in Kerr. Team Ireland will be grouped with England, Wales, Scotland, Israel and Germany for the first round of competition.

"Our team is a mixture of veteran program players and new faces, which provides us a strong foundation for success, but also the promise of an exciting future," Helmer said.

With Kerr providing much of the connection between the RMU defensive unit and the attack, the Colonials are off to a 6-2 start in their 15th Division I season. They'll wrap up the non-conference portion of their schedule this Saturday with a trip to Philadelphia and the campus of Drexel University. 

Visit RMUColonials.com to learn more about the team, and make sure to follow along on Twitter and Instagram.