Layla Magnusen: More Than an Athlete
May 23, 2022
You might know Layla Magnusen ‘22 from the tennis courts… or the soccer field… or even from squash. Not only is she a star on the field, but Magnusen instills the same love for sports onto younger athletes as well.
In her third and final season at St. Luke’s, Magnusen has served as the captain of the Girls’ Varsity Soccer team and the Girls’ Varsity Tennis team, as well as the number one player on the Girls’ Varsity Squash team. She is able to shift her focus seamlessly from season to season, playing at both the high school level as well as competitively. It would not be unusual for Magnusen to go straight from a St. Luke’s soccer game to a tennis match.
While the majority of student-athletes in high schools specialize in one sport, Magnusen has continued to define her own path and play sports for their original intention: love. Deciding early on in her high school career that she did not want to play soccer or tennis at the collegiate level, Magnusen represents St. Luke’s on the athletic fields and continues to play competitively because of her commitment and dedication to her craft.
When she started playing squash in her junior year, she took advantage of St. Lukes’s small class sizes by using her natural skill to play with older, more experienced players (like her sister Audrey) and to become the top player her senior year. Her ability to perform athletically all three seasons is commendable, but that’s not all.
Magnusen has come to love sports so much that she has taken it upon herself to coach youngsters in her free time. Coaching for her local Norwalk Junior Soccer Association and giving private tennis lessons at the Country Club of New Canaan have helped Magnusen spread her love of sports to others around her. Wherever her future goes, she will always have her permanent bond to sports in her back pocket.
