She Earned Her Spot: Ava Gabriel on Playing Junior Men's Lacrosse in Kahnawake

When the idea first came up, Ava Gabriel's reaction was the same one most people would have had. "I can't do that. I'm a girl. I'm going to get beat up." A Junior B coach had floated it casually, almost a throwaway line. A few months later, someone brought it up again. This time she sat with it. And her answer changed. "Why not? It doesn't hurt to try." That decision put Ava on the roster of the Kahnawake Hunters Junior C team, making her one of the first female non-goalie players in Ontario junior lacrosse. Episode 33 of The Creator's Game is her first long-form interview about what the experience has been like – from the dressing room logistics to the on-floor physicality to the quiet moments where she catches herself holding back and has to remind herself she belongs. She does belong. And the people around her know it. Key Moments from This Episode [01:05] Ava started lacrosse at 3 years old – father and grandfather played, box her entire life [01:38] Canada Summer Games 2022 for Team Quebec – "Made me realize there's more to it than just playing back home" [02:38] First reaction from the men's team: "She's a girl. She can't stay the whole time." She proved them wrong. [03:09] Team Haudenosaunee at the World Games with Mekwan Tolpin and Fawn Porter – won the first-ever women's medal [07:00] The mental barrier: sometimes holds herself back because she's a girl, then catches it and plays through [09:27] Do other teams go easy on her? "That's one thing that gets in my head." [14:41] Olympics goal – Sixes lacrosse: "That's a big one where I'm like I want to be on that team." [17:50] Played defense on Charlotte North at the World Games – stripped her, team got the ball back [25:47] First female on the rebranded Hunters Junior C team – history made From the Backyard to the Boys' Roster Ava grew up in Kahnawake with a stick in her hand from the time she could hold one. Her father played. Her grandfathers played. Nobody in the family went pro, but that was never the point. They pushed her to get better, and she pushed herself. She played box her entire life. Field lacrosse didn't come until the 2024 season at OC. The Canada Summer Games in 2022 for Team Quebec were the turning point. Before that, lacrosse was something she did at home. After that, she understood it could be something bigger. When the Hunters Junior C team rebranded, a coach floated the idea of Ava joining the roster. The first time, she dismissed it. The second time, months later, she didn't. She showed up, made the team, and became one of the first female non-goalie players in Ontario junior lacrosse history. The Dressing Room, the Hits, and the Head Game The logistics are straightforward. Coach yells "Ava's coming in, boys out," and they swap. She gets her time in the room, they come back, and the team comes together. Nobody makes it weird. It's not hard, she said, and the team has made it a respectful, normal part of the routine. On the floor, it's more complicated. Ava knows some opponents hold back. She can see it. Instead of a full cross-check, she gets a poke. Instead of a hit, she gets a nudge. It gets in her head sometimes, wondering what is being said in the other team's dressing room. Jay Smith gave his take from the coaching side. When he was playing minor, coaches would point out the girl's number and tell the boys it was up to them how hard to go. If she scored because someone eased up, the bench chewed that player out. His position now: if she earned a spot on the team, she deserves the full experience. Treat her accordingly. If she's a good player, stop the good player. Ava agreed. She wants the hits. She's taken a few already, and they're not that bad. The part she's still working on is the internal game. Sometimes she catches herself holding back and has to remind herself she's there for a reason. She is just another player on the team. Team Haudenosaunee and the World Stage Before the Hunters, Ava represented Team Haudenosaunee at the World Games. She played alongside Mekwan Tolpin, Fawn Porter, Stacy Smith, and Alicia Smith Longboat. The team won the first-ever women's medal on the world stage for Haudenosaunee lacrosse. She was one of the youngest players on the roster. Playing with Stacy Smith hit different. Stacy is a grandmother. Ava didn't even know how old she was until they got to the tournament. Watching a woman decades older compete at that level and make the team on merit was proof that age does not have to be a ceiling. On the opponent side, she got to defend Charlotte North, widely considered the best player in women's lacrosse. No pictures. No conversation. Just defense. She stripped her and her team got the ball back. That was enough. Growing the Game in Kahnawake Back home, Ava is already coaching. She's running the bench for both the U13 and U15 girls teams in Kahnawake this summer. The women's game has not been as established there as it is on Six Nations. Most girls in the community grew up playing soccer instead. Ava wants to change that. She's interested in sports management as a career path. She heard Trey Deere talk about the Syracuse program on the previous episode and it caught her attention. School has been a process – she's changed her degree three times – but she keeps circling back to sports. Her goals are clear. Make the Sixes team. Get to the Olympics. Maybe play in the PLL's women's league. She's not done surprising herself yet. What She Wants Girls to Hear Ava's advice to young girls watching: keep going. Don't give up. Nothing is stopping you and nothing is holding you back. Just go for it. Jay Smith put a finer point on it. A generation of girls is going to see what Ava did and say, "She did it, so I can do it." And the thing they'll be saying won't be "I want to be tough like the boys." It'll be "I want to be tough like Ava Gabriel." The full episode runs about 31 minutes. There's more on the dressing room dynamics, the World Games experience, and a debate between Ava and her younger brother about who's the better lacrosse player. She won that one too.