Brown attacker Hafsa Moinuddin grew up playing on boys’ teams. First, it was tackle football. Then, it was travel baseball. She later picked up basketball, followed by lacrosse in eighth grade. 

Moinuddin was a late lacrosse player, but that was the least of her concerns as a young athlete. She was the only Indian-Pakistani, Muslim girl on her teams, which stirred disapproval among family and teammates. 

Her father, Aamir, who grew up in Pakistan, has remained her biggest supporter. He came to America at age 23 on a standby flight with $50 in his pocket in 1988 and worked his way up to now serve as vice president at Wells Fargo Capital Finance.

“He taught us to work hard.”

How did your father inspire you to pursue sports?

He grew up in Pakistan where religion and culture was super important and everyone was doing it. We’re lucky in that he never forced anything upon [me and my older brother, Humza]. He did teach us about our religion and we went to Sunday school, but he was never pushy. He wanted us to find our own passions.

When I decided to play sports at a young age, it was very unprecedented in the community. No girl did that. There were all these concerns that he was hearing from his uncles and great uncles and all his relatives that how are you letting your daughter do this?

He said, “It’s what she loves to do and she’s actually pretty good at it.” He was smart in that “I was never going to let my culture or my religion get in the way or limit my kids’ passions.” …

Both our parents just taught us to really work hard and when you do you see what happens – and we saw that firsthand with our dad coming to America with not even $100 in his pocket. He was able to really make it.

Why was it viewed as unacceptable for you to play?

The reason it was so unusual was because as a Muslim female you’re supposed to be very conservative and cover yourself. That was the biggest challenge. “She’s going to run out there in shorts and a tank top,” which sounds silly now, but that’s what a lot of people thought.

I used to go to Sunday school in my baseball uniform knowing I had a game after and I had to leave early. Some of my teachers at Sunday school didn’t really approve of that, but my parents told them, “It’s important to her and she’s doing both. If she has to come in her baseball uniform and throw on a head scarf at the mosque, then she’s going to do that and we’re going to play a game after.” 

Describe your early lacrosse experiences.

I was a late lacrosse player, but I did notice lacrosse was a pretty white-washed sport. When I was going to camps for the first time, I noticed my differences. I didn’t look like the other people on the field.

Everyone would ask, “How do I pronounce my name?” They doubted me because they were like, “Who’s this scrawny Indian girl coming on the field? She doesn’t know how to play.”

I was very shy as a kid, but I had confidence when I was on the field. I would try to tell them how to pronounce my name and eventually I was like, “Call me whatever you want. Once we’re on the field together we’re teammates.”

Eventually, people started to realize I had some talent, so they learned my name. That was the neat thing. It didn’t matter what my name was or where I came from. Once we’re on the field and had the same goal of winning, that all disappeared. …

Every time I stepped on the field or every time I played I had this pressure to prove myself and I thrived in that pressure knowing I was the first female of my descent doing something so different and extraordinary.

Reflecting on your career as you enter your senior year, what has lacrosse given you?

It’s given me almost a new life. When I first started playing, I was very hesitant to start because I was a tom boy and I didn’t want to wear a kilt and that was my initial hesitation. I was thinking, I’ve come such a long way, but it gave me the confidence to be who I was and be comfortable in my own skin.

While I might look different than most other players, that didn’t matter once I was on the field. That really did make me comfortable with who I was. I knew I couldn’t change my name and I knew I couldn’t change the color of my skin, so all I could was keep being the best player. That was what motivated me.