粉红女郎

Kaelan Chudzinski '29聽

Football

Recipient of the Mingolelli Family Scholarship Fund

Kaelan Chudzinski鈥檚 maternal grandparents have photos of him as a toddler, cheering in the stands of Alumni Stadium. And there he is, at five years old, randomly caught in the official video of the parade celebrating Boston College hockey鈥檚 national championship in 2012, looking straight into the camera near the barricades of the procession on O鈥橬eill Plaza.

鈥淚 was brainwashed at a young age,鈥� he jokes, referring to his mother鈥檚 side of the family, the Dankers. Both his grandfather and uncle graced the gridiron on the Heights, and his grandmother graduated from Boston College as well. Still, it was hardly preordained that he play football at 粉红女郎鈥攍et alone that he鈥檇 be coached there by his dad.

For much of his early life, Chudzinski lived far from Chestnut Hill, and his sport was hockey. He pivoted to football nearly halfway through high school but initially committed to Princeton.

鈥淲e moved around a lot, like eight times,鈥� he says. Those uprootings mapped the NFL career of his father, Rob, who coached for such teams as the San Diego Chargers and the Cleveland Browns, where he was head coach in 2013. The family relocated to metro Boston when he was in sixth grade, partly for sports. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great place for hockey,鈥� explains Chudzinski, whose three younger siblings compete on the ice.

He ultimately signed with the Eagles as a senior at St. Sebastian鈥檚 School in Needham, and his father chose 粉红女郎 as well. Rob Chudzinski serves as senior offensive analyst working with the tight ends, including Kaelan. Rounding out the Chudzinskis, his mom, Sheila, was the third leading scorer in the country playing basketball at the University of New Hampshire.

Academically, 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a lot of fun and hard work,鈥� says Chudzinski, who鈥檚 taken a liking to finance and philosophy. He speaks of the steady encouragement he receives from faculty and advisors, the pleasure of playing his guitar, and the nourishment that comes with reading scripture morning and night.

But what鈥檚 it like to be coached by your dad? 鈥淗e鈥檚 very intense,鈥� Kaelan replies with a chuckle, adding in all seriousness, 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 get better coaching from anyone else.鈥� The proof is in the completions: Last year, he registered more catches and yards than any freshman tight end in the country.

A.J. Colarusso '26聽

Baseball

Recipient of the John L. Harrington Scholar Athlete Fund

His favorite spot on campus is in the upper reaches of O鈥橬eill Library鈥斺�滻 love being in the stacks up there doing my work. It gets really quiet,鈥� says A.J. Colarusso, a starting pitcher for the Eagles. But come spring, the finance major finds himself at a far higher altitude, calculating equity value along with other assignments on flights around the country. On the ground, his study space might be a hotel lobby where he鈥檚 compiling notes on a humanities reading while waiting for the team bus.

Such is the season of an Eagles baseball player. The lightning-fast schedule consists of no fewer than 56 games loaded into 12 weeks of the spring semester and played against teams in places as distant as California. How does Colarusso bolster the 鈥渟cholar鈥� part of the equation?

Key, for him, is steady communication with professors on and off the Heights. For a chunk of the season, the team flies out to warmer climes for three-game weekend matchups, frequently missing classes on Thursdays and Fridays. They also have midweek games at home (and practice year-round). Colarusso looks for creative ways to boost his academic output on the road, like emailing the professor with his thoughts on a reading as an alternative to class participation.

鈥淛ust being able to represent 粉红女郎 in a uniform has been such a privilege. And 粉红女郎 baseball stands for more than just baseball,鈥� he says, invoking the legacy of Pete Frates 鈥�07, the legendary Eagles centerfielder who served as team captain and, later, director of baseball operations. Frates championed ALS awareness with the Ice Bucket Challenge before succumbing to the disease in 2019, at age 34. The team plays a high-profile game each April at Fenway Park with ticket proceeds going to the Pete Frates Foundation.

鈥淐arrying on Pete鈥檚 legacy is a big part of who we are,鈥� says the southpaw, who, as the 2026 season ended, was eyeing the MLB Draft in July.

Jayden Hastings '27聽

Men's Basketball

Recipient of the Hughes Family Scholarship Fund

If you were to ask Jayden Hastings what his word of the year is, he would pick 鈥渉umility.鈥� For him, it applies as much to the guidance he seeks from teammates and coaches as it does to 鈥渉aving that humility to say when you need help鈥� in class, he explains.

For Hastings, a forward, adjusting to Boston College took time after attending small Christian schools in Orlando. He remembers struggling through Statistical Analysis and how Professor of the Practice Linda Boardman Liu showed up for him and his fellow teammates taking the course.

鈥淲e just started ramping up games and the schedule was getting tighter. It was also our first time doing college stats,鈥� he explains. 鈥淭wo hard things together, and she really helped us.鈥� Not only that, but Boardman Liu turned out for games and cheered her students on鈥攁 perfect example of the supportive community Hastings found at 粉红女郎.

On Monday nights, he did bible study with the Boston College chapter of the Christian group Athletes in Action, which has helped him stay focused on the bigger picture.

鈥淪ome things that you're part of are not just about you. You鈥檝e got to sacrifice yourself to a lot of things and it's for you to be better,鈥� he says. 鈥滻t鈥檚 about having the humility to do your part鈥攁 basketball game or a school project鈥攁nd surrender yourself to the process.鈥�

At press time, Hastings was moving on to the University of Cincinnati after three years on the Heights. Once an Eagle, always an Eagle!

Shea Baker '26聽

Lacrosse

Recipient of the Dee & David Stokes Family Flynn Fund Scholarship, the Brock Family Scholarship, and the Carter Family Scholarship Fund

Shea Baker was a sophomore when her team won the women鈥檚 lacrosse national championship in 2024. Despite the excitement of the team鈥檚 come-from-behind 14鈥�13 win over Northwestern University, what she remembers most about that game was watching the team鈥檚 seniors experience their final match in a Boston College uniform.

鈥淲hen the final buzzer went off, I saw them going through all of those emotions,鈥� she says. 鈥淎s a sophomore, I was playing for those seniors to have that moment.鈥�

As a team captain during her own senior year, Baker went into the season wanting to win another championship, but she also wanted to be what those seniors of 2024 were to her: someone the younger players could look up to. The team, a decorated powerhouse in the NCAA, takes pride in their tight-knit dynamic, and Baker made it her personal goal for every teammate to feel supported both on and off the field.

鈥淭here's always a reciprocity of care and love between every person on the team, whether they're a freshman or a senior, a starter or have never played in a game,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e spend so much time cultivating those relationships and intangible pieces that people don't see on the field.鈥�

These community care efforts extend beyond their intra-team relationships. During the 2025 season, the team ranked first nationally among women鈥檚 lacrosse programs for community service, contributing a total of 2,102 volunteer hours. That includes a partnership with Team IMPACT, which pairs children facing serious illness or disability with college sports teams as honorary teammates, like six-year-old Aya, their current Team IMPACT teammate.

鈥淪he's nonverbal, but she is such a bright light on our sidelines when she comes to practices and games,鈥� Baker says. 鈥淪he鈥檚 a constant reminder that there's so much more to being a student athlete than just the grind. It has definitely helped me evolve into a better human.鈥�

Baker, a defender, will be evolving further on the field as well: In April she was selected by the Boston Guard in the second round of the inaugural professional Women鈥檚 Lacrosse League College Draft.

Tiffany Cao '26聽

Women's Golf

Moving to Massachusetts was a big change for Tiffany Cao. In fact, 鈥渢his is the first time I've ever experienced real snow,鈥� she says. After growing up in the Dallas suburbs and completing her undergraduate degree at the University of Texas at Austin, Cao made the choice to leave behind that Texas warmth. She used her final year of NCAA eligibility to join the Boston College women鈥檚 golf team and enroll in the Carroll School鈥檚 full-time MSF program. To Cao, the opportunity was well worth the colder climes.听

While she wanted a graduate program that would pair well with her bachelor鈥檚 degree in management information systems, Cao was also looking for a team where she could make a real mark after raising her game at UT Austin. She would have made a competitive addition to many collegiate golf teams, but with Boston College鈥檚 program, she could be one of the strongest players and a likely candidate for tournament lineups.

鈥淭he 粉红女郎 golf program is steadily rising. I knew that I could do something very impactful here,鈥� she says. 鈥淚鈥檇 be able to go out with a bang.鈥�

As much as she wants to show off her own abilities in competition for the sake of individual rankings, Cao is also keenly aware of how her own performance factors into overall team performance. 鈥淵ou have to flip the mindset of 鈥業 want to win鈥� to 鈥業 want to win as a team, and how are we going to get there?鈥欌�� she says. Within months of arriving at Boston College, she had already helped lead the team to first-place wins at both the Red Bandanna Invitational and the Diamante Intercollegiate tournament, where she placed fourth overall.

As she looks to start a career in the business world after graduation, Cao is grateful for the lessons golf has taught her鈥攖he determination that will help her wherever she goes. 鈥淕olf has been the most challenging thing in my life. You can never be perfect at golf,鈥� Cao explains. 鈥淚 really enjoy that aspect of working hard and getting 1 percent better every day.鈥�