The Weekly Newspaper of Inglewood
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 69, No. 20 - May 14, 2020
Thank You Lalos Grill Restaurant
Lalos Grill Restaurant donated an amazing meal to the Inglewood police department as an appreciation for protecting and serving our community. Inglewood businesses believe in giving back. Photo Inglewood Police Department.
Morgan Wood is Thankful in So Many Ways
By Gregg McMullin
At first glance, Morgan Wood looks to be like
most teenage girls preparing for graduation and
into the next phase of her life. She is a bright,
athletic, and outgoing and has plenty of friends.
There’s also the Morgan, who has a plan for her
future, and a pathway planned to prepare herself.
On the verge of graduating from high school,
many seniors have interests that steer them in
many different directions. For Morgan, she is
focused on the big picture, and with a 4.0 GPA,
she is on plenty of Academic Honor Rolls.
Morgan admits that staying in touch with
her teachers and classmates during this time
of uncertainty has been a challenge. But she
says, everyone adapts to their surroundings.
She does miss the personal interaction but
stays connected with social media outlets. “I’ve
been doing my schoolwork each day online and
staying connected with my teachers to make
sure I make the most out of online school.”
Morgan says that her high school experience
has been special and she’s met life-long friends
along the way. Over her four years, she has
enjoyed a successful academic career. She says
there isn’t one particular class she likes more
than another because they’ve all been great. “I
couldn’t choose a favorite class because all of
my classes and teachers this year have been
incredible! Each class is great in its own way.”
Presently her immediate goals are applying
her success in the classroom and working on
her scholarship awards for college. As for her
future goals, it is to maintain her stellar grades
through the end of the school year. She’d like
to transition her success to college in the fall
and get the most out of her college experience.
“Academically, I’ve been on the honor roll each
year since middle school and push myself in
my classes every year.”
Morgan will be attending Liberty University
in Lynchburg, Virginia, a highly respected
Division 1 University. She will be majoring
in Business Administration with an emphasis
in Digital Marketing and Advertising. She
intends to play lacrosse and will have the
opportunity to play women’s lacrosse for the
Flames. She could be an impact player for a
program on the rise.
Morgan is not only accomplished in the
classroom, but she’s one of the school’s top
athletes too. She was a standout on the soccer
team but excelled in lacrosse. She’s been playing
lacrosse since she was a little girl thanks
in part to her father. “My family has always
been very invested in the lacrosse community
here.” She recalled, “I started playing when I
was around six and have loved it ever since.
I’ve played on a club lacrosse team since 7th
grade, and that grew my love and skill for
lacrosse even more!”
Her dad Steve, who goes by Woody, is
responsible for introducing lacrosse to El
Segundo and the high school. Woody’s lacrosse
credentials are impressive. He was an
All-American lacrosse player at West Point
and the head coach at Pepperdine and Loyola
Marymount universities before starting boys
and girl’s lacrosse in the South Bay in 2005.
He is on the city’s Youth Sports Council as
President of the lacrosse association.
Morgan says her sister Kelsey was a big
influence and made her a better player over
the years. Kelsey won the Jackie Pitts Award
as a senior in high school in 2015. The award
recognizes a graduating senior in each area who
is an exceptional player and invested in the
development of the game in her community.
When Kelsey became the ESMS lacrosse coach,
her sister Morgan stood out, and Morgan’s drive
for excellence helped develop her teammates.
Kelsey was an all-league player for the
Eagles and Morgan followed in her footsteps.
“I’ve been a starter on my varsity lacrosse
team since my freshman year.” She won the
Ocean League Offensive Player of The Year
in her sophomore and junior years. She was
selected captain for the second year in a row.
This season she helped her team to be ranked
ninth in the CIF. When the season was cut
short, Morgan was on pace to break the school
scoring record set by her sister Kelsey.
Morgan followed her sister’s passion for giving
back and started coaching at the ESMS as a
freshman and sophomore with her father. As
a junior and senior, she was the head coach,
as well as guiding the K-5th grade teams. She
leaves a legacy knowing she has helped make a
difference and the continued interest in lacrosse.
Morgan was an integral part of her class and
was involved in the ASB throughout her four
years at El Segundo high school. What Morgan
will miss most about graduating is the team
aspect of playing high school sports. “I loved
the business of the school year, trying to balance
schoolwork, work, practice, and games.”
Morgan is also thankful for her high school
experience that is winding down to the last
few weeks. She has made the most of her
four years in high school and says her teachers
and the coaches were terrific. “ESHS does
an amazing job of providing great coaches for
every sports team.” She added that the teachers
are so amazing and take a personal interest in
their student’s successes.
What got Morgan through the ups and downs
of high school was meeting some of the incredible
friends through the teams she played on.
“My teammates have been the greatest support
system, and I’m so grateful for the memories
we’ve made over the past four years.”
Morgan summed up her thoughts by thanking
her family, friends and the community who
helped shape the person she is today. •
Morgan Wood was a two-time Ocean League Offensive Player of the Year for the Eagles.