Wentworth Enticing Student Athletes from Across the Nation
Megan Bachli -- pictured with family-- is relocating from Texas with plans to study Mechanical Engineering and plans to double-minor in Aerospace Engineering and Computer Science.
For Addie Kiphuth, the draw wasn’t just the thrill of the lacrosse field; it was the silhouette of Boston’s skyline that mirrored her childhood dreams of building big.
Kiphuth, a talented lacrosse player from Minnesota, is one of three out-of-state student-athletes who recently signed with Wentworth Institute of Technology, a university where a burgeoning athletics department is proving to be as enticing as its renowned career-focused education.
“I was invited to visit Wentworth last July, and I had never been to Boston before, but I immediately fell in love,” said Kiphuth, who has been playing lacrosse since she was in eighth grade. “When I first came to campus, I knew this was the university I wanted to go to. And that's when I officially told my coach, ‘Yep, this is where I’m going. For sure.’”
Kiphuth was interested in attending Wentworth because of its emphasis on hands-on learning, and plans to study civil engineering at the university.
“When I was in my fourth-grade math class, I told my teacher I was going to build big buildings one day,” Kiphuth said. “I live about an hour from Minneapolis, and whenever we would go there, as a kid, I’d be like, ‘Oh, we’re going to see the big buildings,’ and I just loved it. Even now, I love the architecture in those skylines, and that’s really what motivates me to learn all I can at Wentworth.”
She’s also excited to be able to continue playing lacrosse while earning an education in a field she’s passionate about.
“My favorite part of the sport is the team aspect, and I feel like lacrosse is very much constantly working with your teammates. When you score a goal, it’s not just one person scoring a goal—it’s a group effort, and different people had to move and do certain things just for that goal to be scored,” she said. “I came and watched a Wentworth women’s lacrosse practice in October, and I absolutely loved all the girls. That’s what really sealed in the decision to study at Wentworth for me. They really just welcomed me with open arms.”
With Kiphuth’s addition to the team, Head Women’s Lacrosse Coach Ciara Morley said she’s feeling good about the team’s roster heading into the fall semester.
“I'm super excited for the incoming first-year students to join our team and to see what they can accomplish,” Morley said. “The Class of 2029 will be my first full recruiting class as head coach, and I think they’re the perfect group to elevate our gameplay and help take Wentworth women’s lacrosse to the next level. We had a really successful season this year, and with the passion, intensity, and experience our new players bring to the table, I’m confident we’re well on our way to becoming a strong competitor in the Conference of New England moving forward.”
Joining Kiphuth on Wentworth women’s sports teams are Vanessa Lobrigo and Megan Bachli, who will be playing volleyball in the fall.
A Wentworth campus visit was all it took for Bachli to decide on where to go for her college education.
“After I met with the coach, me and my mom went and explored downtown Boston for a little bit, and just being in the city is so much fun. There are so many things to try, and so many things to do, and it’s such a walkable city. And all of that contributed to my decision,” said Bachli, who has been playing volleyball since she was seven years old.
“I wanted to pick a school where, if volleyball wasn’t in the equation, I would still attend. And I knew that Wentworth was that place for me,” she said.
Bachli will be studying mechanical engineering and plans to double-minor in aerospace engineering and computer science. She’ll be relocating to Boston from Texas.
“I really want to be an engineer on airplanes someday,” she said.
Like Bachli, Lobrigo—who will be studying architecture—was enthralled by Wentworth after visiting the campus and meeting some of her future classmates.
“I live in a very small city here in Arizona, and it’s not that there’s not architecture surrounding you, but it’s not like the Boston architecture,” Lobrigo said.
Lobrigo has been playing competitive volleyball for five years, and she was interested in finding a college and career path that would allow her to stay focused on academics while participating in the sport.
“I just wanted the time to be able to do my schoolwork while still playing volleyball,” she said.
An architecture degree from Wentworth and her name on the university’s women’s volleyball roster was the best combination.
“During the COVID era, I remember I played a lot of building games, and I loved it. And at first, I really wanted to do interior or exterior designing. But the more I looked into it, I realized I was more interested in the building process of it,” she said. “I knew Wentworth was the perfect opportunity to study this.”
Lobrigo said the decision to attend the university was an easy one, given the university’s commitment to experiential learning and career preparedness.
“I feel like I could do big things with a degree from Wentworth, and it was just that simple,” she said.
Wenworth Head Women’s Volleyball Coach Nick Baldecchi is looking forward to having talented athletes like Lobrigo and Bachli join the team.
“Both Megan and Vanessa bring a tremendous amount of dedication and skill to the women’s volleyball team. Their diverse club and high school careers will help elevate the team to adapt to a multitude of gameplay scenarios. Not only are they both amazing athletes, their motivation to succeed stems from the classroom, and I have no doubt that they will excel in the Mechanical Engineering and Architecture programs,” Baldecchi said.