Portsmouth High School never fails to breed collegiate-level athletes. In recent years, they have sent athletes to Division I, II, and III programs all across the country for various sports. The most popular are baseball and women’s lacrosse. Many alumni from PHS who are now playing a sport in college are aware of the benefits PHS sports gave them, all of which helped them at the collegiate level. Here are some athletes who made impacts in the PHS sports programs that now play in college.

Colin Marshall, Husson University, Baseball

Colin Marshall is a second baseman for Husson University in Bangor, Maine. The sophomore is entering his second year of baseball for the Eagles. He is confident in his team, and aiming for their second conference championship win in a row and a bid in the regional tournament. 

He played many positions for PHS including first base and outfield. He made an all-state team his senior year (2022) and helped lead the Clippers baseball team to a 17-1 regular season. Colin spoke highly of PHS athletics, emphasizing the tightly knit baseball program and how the players on the squad helped motivate each other to be successful. Another strength was the connections from PHS’s program to collegiate coaches that had an impact in terms of recruitment. 

Husson was the college he chose to call home for his future in sports because the coaching staff for the Eagles felt as though his play style would be a good fit for the program. He enjoyed what they offered, he wanted to win and compete to fight for a spot. 

“I think it’s more appealing to go in and work for a spot than get it handed to you,” Marshall said.

Colin is currently studying exercise science and hopes that in his collegiate career, he can make as many memories as possible. He wishes to be able to play the sport he grew up playing for as long as possible, and he is doing just that. 

Mia Smith, Endicott College, Lacrosse

Mia Smith was an All-American lacrosse player at PHS who graduated in 2022. She also played basketball and soccer throughout high school. At Endicott College, Smith is a part of a dominant lacrosse team that hopes to win their conference championship and go on to play in the NCAA tournament.

PHS lacrosse has been a powerhouse in recent years, for men’s and women’s lacrosse. Smith played with and against multiple future college athletes in high school, many of them being teammates.  

“I was lucky to play with such talented teammates [at PHS]; it really prepared and pushed me to be a better player,” Mia said.

 Smith is studying psychology at Endicott College. Her hopes for her time in college aren’t all athletic though, as she notes it’s also about the experiences: “I want to have fun and make a lot of memories. At the end of the day, it won’t go further than this so I just want to make the best of the time I’m here.”

Will Hindle, University of Rhode Island, Baseball

Will Hindle is a redshirt freshman at URI who underwent shoulder surgery in 2023. He plays outfield on URI’s baseball team; however, that wasn’t always the story. 

Hindle played shortstop for Portsmouth his senior year (2022), and played second base his junior year. This transition he is making is a challenge he is excited to take on, and he should do just fine judging by his history at PHS. Will didn’t only play baseball at Portsmouth, he also played football as the quarterback. The quarterback was a position he hadn’t played before because he was a wide receiver in his junior year. He ended up molding into an explosive, dual-threat quarterback.

“PHS prepared me for college physically and mentally while I was there,” Hindle said. The position change he is experiencing in college is something he has seen before. He also dealt with a shoulder injury in high school that carried him into college. “It helped me deal with adversity from minor and major injuries,” Hindle also explained. He hopes to get back to his old self after his shoulder surgery last year.

Hindle chose URI because of the coaching staff along with what the school had to offer in regards to education and location. He is studying Business Finance at URI and has big goals for his future. He hopes to play at the next level and become the best player possible.

Maggie Parker, University of Vermont, Lacrosse

Maggie Parker is entering her first lacrosse season at UVM and has high hopes for her team. She hopes her competitive team can win the American East Conference championship. 

Parker was a part of the 2023 PHS women’s lacrosse team filled with Division I talent that gave every other team in New Hampshire problems. She played stellar defense consistently and was selected for an All-State team and played defense for PHS lacrosse. She reflects on the experience she had during her time with the lacrosse program. 

“I was fortunate to have such a competitive lacrosse team and competition that allowed me to play at a high level during the season,” Parker said. 

Many players in the area depend on AAU travel ball lacrosse for the competitive atmosphere; however, Parker found that she was experiencing that competitiveness at her high school. 

“There were many reasons I chose the University of Vermont,” Parker said. When she visited the school, she realized that she had found her school, and she admired how the girls on the team interacted with each other as “they were all very close friends.” Parker also noted that they had just won the conference and she liked how competitive they were.

As of right now, Parker’s major is undeclared, however, she has thoughts of choosing biology or health science. She was twice named Academic All-American and captain of the lacrosse team her senior year. She hopes to be a captain for UVM and a starter while making as many memories as possible.

Max Lalime, Northern Essex Community College, Baseball

Max Lalime currently plays outfield for Northern Essex and is a redshirt freshman. However, Lalime has ‘higher hopes’ for the future.

Born and raised in Portsmouth, Lalime reflects on the baseball program from his youth and how he loved the game from the beginning. He enjoyed the opportunity to play varsity baseball as a freshman alongside his older brother, Oscar. However, when he became an upperclassman, the experience as a  “veteran” of varsity baseball came with responsibility. He was a leader during his last two years in the program and he led by example. However, there are no handouts with Portsmouth baseball.

“The program prepared me physically and especially mentally, I learned I have to work for every single thing I wanted. That made it more competitive, it made it feel more like college,” said Lalime.

Baseball kept him ‘humble’ through the ups and downs. ‘Anything short of hard work won’t be enough’ is what he learned from the program. Lalime continued to work hard through adversity in his past two years, as he started college at Baldwin Wallace University, a top Division III baseball program in Ohio. 

He soon learned that it wasn’t quite the right fit, so he went the Junior College route to replant a seed, and he did just that. In his first tournament, with Northern Essex, he started off hot with two home runs in five games, a 10-game batting average of .300, along with five stolen bases and six runs batted in.

Restarting his collegiate baseball career was the main reason Max chose Northern Essex, along with hoping in the next two years he could transfer out to an NCAA school and keep his career moving forward. Max’s goals are to be the best player he can possibly be, and when he transfers he wants to keep up the outstanding work ethic he has always had.