“Just close your eyes and tell me where you are.”
“I want to be a Florida Gator.”
It was that simple. Two seconds and Sammi Burgess knew.
Sitting on the phone with her mother, stressed and nervous about where she was meant to be, Burgess made the biggest decision of her life by just closing her eyes and taking a few deep breaths.
She saw it.
The school. The team. And the sunshine.
Everything Burgess wanted — needed — she found at Florida.
If you asked her when she knew she would be going to Florida, she would tell you in that moment on the phone with her mother — not when she visited the school at only 16 years old, but when she closed her eyes and saw Donald R. Dizney Stadium as the only place she wanted to play.
UF was not new to Burgess. She began going to Florida football games with her stepfather, Scott Bentkowski, when she was 7 years old, which became a regular bonding experience for the two.
“My stepdad has always liked Florida,” Burgess said. “We started watching the football games when I was in fourth grade and I was like, ‘I want to go there.’ But they never had a team.”
Burgess’ stepfather became Sammi’s mentor as she continued into club lacrosse. Bentkowski was a lacrosse player in college, playing for Salisbury — a university in Maryland.
Their love for lacrosse ultimately bonded them, and Bentkowski began coaching Burgess when she became a player for the Maryland Sky Walkers, a local club team.
It was with the Sky Walkers that Burgess was discovered by McDonogh School women’s lacrosse coach Chris Robinson. Robinson saw her play in her first game in the attacker position. Before that, she had mostly played defense. At McDonogh, Burgess was part of a team that won 91 straight games while she was in high school.
After two years of being offered spots on teams all across the country — including her hometown Terrapins — she narrowed down her options to Northwestern, Maryland and Florida.
Northwestern fought hard for Burgess, who was a top recruit in the 2014 recruiting class and an Under Armour All-American First-Team selection. But most importantly, coaches were drawn to Burgess because of her attitude on the field.
Her parents, high school coach and even UF coach Amanda O’Leary have described her as her own biggest critic. But her perfectionism is what helped make her the rough and tough player she is, Robinson said.
That tough mentality came out in her final high school game.
“Their senior year championship game, they were down in the second half,” said Burgess’ mother, Michelle Bentkowski. “They had won it every year, they won every game in high school. I was on the sidelines saying, ‘We’re not done here, we’re not done.’”
Northwestern, one of Florida’s biggest rivals in the American Lacrosse Conference, saw the same talent Michelle Bentkowski saw.
The school knew Burgess’ impact as a leader, an offensive weapon and momentum builder was undeniable — she had proven it on the field time and time again. The Forest Hill, Md., native could bring more than just points to a team, and that’s what made her a top recruit.
But Northwestern was not where Burgess saw herself. Her decision to decline the Wildcats’ invitation to join the team came on her flight home after her second visit.
As she sat on the cramped flight heading back to Maryland, she turned to her mother and said Northwestern was not where she wanted to go.
“She looked at me and said, ‘I just can’t go to school at Northwestern,’ and I said, ‘OK. It’s your decision, it’s always been your decision,’” Michelle Bentkowski said. “She just said, ‘It’s nothing against the coaches. It’s a great school, but I don’t think it’s the right fit for me.’ When we went to visit Florida, we all were impressed. I looked at Scott as the non-athlete of the family and said I know why any athlete would want to come here.”
For Burgess, it all came down to what school provided the best education and athletics program. Florida’s weather was just a bonus for the freshman.
“I wanted to play somewhere that was in the top five, had a good education, but nothing really compares to Florida,” Burgess said. “It’s just the whole package. I don’t think anything compares to here.”
When Burgess made her decision and said goodbye to the friends and teammates she had played with for four years, she started a new chapter in her life. One that her mother believes will result in a national championship title for Florida’s lacrosse program.
“Everyone thought this was going to be a rebuilding year,” Michelle Bentkowski said. “I’m going to tell you, it’s not rebuilding. They want to win. They want to bring a national title to Florida.”
Florida’s freshmen, Burgess and 10 other top-notch recruits have been referred to as Stage 2 in the lacrosse program, which lost its talented inaugural class after the 2013 season.
But Scott Bentkowski believes otherwise.
“They aren’t rebuilding,” he said. “They’re just reloading.”
Follow Eden Otero on Twitter @edenotero_l
Sammi Burgess (2) drives to the net during Florida’s 21-5 win against Jacksonville on Feb. 12 at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. Burgess chose UF over several different schools.
