Push to be the best helping Kylie Pastor thrive in goal for Haslett-Williamston girls lacrosse

When Kylie Pastor glances at the throat guard of her helmet, she sees a simple message — be the best..

The Haslett-Williamston senior goalie and Coastal Carolina lacrosse signee has had those words written on her throat guard the last few years. Pastor took that phrase from the University of Maryland and Goaliesmith training program as motivation for how she wants to play or handle business away from the field.

"I just use it as a reminder that any time during the game or during the day that I want to be my best self and work on bettering myself," Pastor said. "I always want to get better and be the best I can be. I look at that before the game and remind myself that that's something super important to me."

Pastor has lived that message and performed at a high level while contributing to the rise of the Haslett-Willamston girls lacrosse program in recent seasons. She played a part in the program making history last spring by claiming its first CAAC and regional titles.

And Haslett-Williamston is building off that success this spring by repeating as CAAC champions and owning a 15-1 record entering Friday's game at Spring Lake. Pastor, who was voted the latest LSJ high school athlete of the week winner, has shined as the last line of defense and recorded her second shutout of the season while allowing just three goals in three games last week. Haslett-Williamston's 17-0 win over Ovid-Elsie marked the sixth shutout of Pastor's career.

"She's the first record holder for the state of Michigan that's ever had five or more career shutouts," said Haslett-Williamston coach Chad Pastor, who is Kylie's father. "That's how rare it is. Nobody ever does it because the game is designed to allow people to score. It's a combination of the defense and her.

"She's just so dialed in and willing to put in all the hard work to make the stops happen and then she's got the whole support of the team."

Kylie Pastor has gone out of her way to boost her skills, whether it has been making trips to the East Coast to train with other goalies and face shots from other college-bound players. She hopes her commitment and effort to being the best goalie possible can help Haslett-Williamston in its quest to capture a state title.

"I think my biggest motivation in trying to get us hopefully to the state championship and winning is just the ability to see how far we were able to come from our freshman year as a group and just the growth in general we've made," Kylie Pastor said. "I think it keeps pushing me to see how far we can get that before we're done and then being able to leave a legacy for the next groups of people that are going to come in in the future."

Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on X @brian_calloway.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Lacrosse: Haslett-Williamston's Kylie Pastor making big mark in goal