Elizabeth Morrison began her collegiate athletic career hoping to become an influential presence on the field before graduating.

Mission accomplished ... and then some.

Morrison recently graduated from The College of New Jersey as a record setting two-sport star and national award winner. She racked up numerous individual honors while contributing to both the lacrosse and field hockey programs' success at the Division III powerhouse.

"It was a really great experience," said Morrison, a 2014 Stonington High graduate. "I wouldn't have traded it for anything."

In lacrosse, Morrison was a four-time first team All-American and two-time national defensive player of the year playing for a program that qualified for the NCAA tournament four times, reached the Final Four twice and went 77-11 in her four years. She's not only the program's record holder in both single season and career draw controls, ground balls and caused turnovers, but also finished her career second in NCAA Division III history in caused turnovers and eighth in ground balls.

Her three-year field hockey resume also is impressive. As a senior, Morrison earned second team All-American honors and was named New Jersey Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year after leading her team in points last season with 16 goals and nine assists. She helped the Lions go 53-9, qualify for three NCAA tournaments, including two Final Four trips.

Those are just some of her honors.

"I was really happy to achieve those awards but I really think that it all comes back to the success of the team," Morrison said.

Now Morrison, one of the best female athletes to come out of Stonington High School, is moving on to the next phase of her life.

Her immediate future is all mapped out.

This fall, Morrison will serve as an assistant coach for both the field hockey and lacrosse programs at Trinity College for two years while she also attends graduate school. Armed with an undergraduate degree in biology, she'll get a masters in public policy with a focus on the health field.

"I'm excited that I know what I want to do, that I already have a plan," Morrison said. "Thankfully, this summer I can work camps, so I have a little down time before I get into everything."

Morrison's experience at the College of New Jersey helped convince her to go down the coaching path. She was fortunate to find a position that allows her to remain involved with both sports.

"I thought it would be a perfect opportunity," Morrison said.

Morrison will bring a wealth of knowledge about both sports to her new coaching job. As a recent graduate, she'll relate well to the players, and understands the demands of a Division III student-athlete. She can tell a few stories about how she successfully navigated her own career and became a master at time management, a skill that will aid her as she enters the working world.

There's another valuable skill that Morrison picked up in her playing career.

"The best thing about playing sports in college is the ability to learn from your mistakes and take criticism," she said. "A lot of times when people fail, it's seen as something terrible. But, in sports, if you make a mistake once, that's okay as long as you don't make the same mistake over and over again and you learn from it.

"... It's really a great experience to teach people how to take criticism and how to respond to it positively, instead of getting really down on yourself. In sports, we see criticism as a way to get better. I think that all athletes really have the upper hand going into the professional world with those things in mind."

When asked about her fondest memories from college, she focused more on off-field moments — hanging out in the locker room with her teammates, traveling to Kentucky for the women's lacrosse Final Four and visiting Churchill Downs and eating dinner at the track's Millionaires Row.

Morrison also cherishes the theme t-shirt a teammate made for her — a team tradition during any Final Four trip.

"For lacrosse this year, I got a red, white and blue tie-dye shirt," Morrison said. "I'm very patriotic. I wear red, white and blue cleats. My stick is colored like the American flag and I always wear an American flag bandana."

Morrison will spend the Fourth of July with family on Cape Cod. She has plenty to celebrate this year. Then she'll start coaching a club team in New Jersey.

g.keefe@theday.com