At her high school in Fort Lauderdale, FL, Lily Spyredes was known for being a standout student-athlete. Not only was she a National Merit Scholar Finalist, but she was inducted into multiple academic honor societies and was a Rho Kappa Scholar her senior year. On the lacrosse field, she excelled as a midfielder and as an attacker; was selected for the First Team All-District and All-County teams; was named a High School All-American, Under Armour All-American, and Florida Select Lacrosse 2022 player; and was the captain of her club team.
Originally a preferred walk-on to play lacrosse at another college, Spyredes received a last-minute phone call during the fall of her senior year of high school. “Coach explained that she couldn’t take me anymore because the COVID year dried up a lot of the spots she originally had designated for incoming freshmen. There were too many current upperclassmen who had taken a year off of eligibility, and the roster was at capacity,” she says.
Scrambling to find another option, Spyredes applied to UVA just minutes before the deadline. “I was shocked that I was accepted as an out-of-state student,” she says, now laughing about the situation.
Pivoting from Her Passion
But once on Grounds, she faced a challenging transition. She had tried out for the lacrosse team and didn’t make it. “I was pretty devastated,” she says. “But I still had this mindset of wanting to be a Division I athlete.”
So, she pivoted to rowing, a sport she had never tried before after learning the team was looking for walk-on athletes. Despite battling sinus and skin infections during three of the six weeks of tryouts, she prevailed to earn a spot on the varsity team.
“At the end of my tryout period, my coach decided to offer me a spot. At first I was elated; my hard work had paid off in full,” Spyredes shares. “However, my coach told me in no uncertain terms that my had work was not over.”
The head rowing coach looked at her times and initially thought Spyredes wouldn’t make the team. Spyredes was slow compared to varsity standards and significantly smaller than the rest of the rowers. However, the coach had her final “say” and chose to take a “flyer” on Spyredes.
“While I was slower than the rest of the team, I had demonstrated that I was willing to do whatever it took to be there for my teammates, even when I couldn’t show up for myself,” Spyredes says.
And she was certainly tested that season. Citing it as “one of the hardest times in my life,” Spyredes and her teammates remained determined and resilient, and ended up walking away with the ACC Championship.
Setting Her Sights on Business
After rowing season ended, Spyredes was exhausted. Not only was the sport grueling physically, but it also demanded a lot of her time, and balancing academics with athletics was increasingly a challenge. “It just wasn’t sustainable for me,” she says. Taking a step back, she instead choose to focus on her studies, earning good grades, and ultimately, improving her chances of getting into McIntire.
“Grades are a huge priority for me,” she explains. “The rule in my family growing up was if you don’t have good grades, you can’t play sports. I really homed in on that.”
Spyredes says that lacrosse and McIntire were the two main draws in making her decision to attend UVA. She attributes her interest in business to the entrepreneurial spirit of coming from a family of immigrants. Both sets of her grandparents were born in Greece, her father in Canada. Her grandparents are Pontic Greeks, representing the first generation of family born free from slavery by the Ottoman Empire. Although her grandparents had only first- and second-grade educations, they ran multiple businesses throughout the course of her life. Her father and uncle were also entrepreneurial, opening their own doughnut shop, Dandee Donuts.
“I still have pictures of me dipping doughnuts into the frosting as a kid. That’s actually how I learned my colors!” Spyredes says. “They inspired me, and it was something I could see myself doing in the future.”
Building Connections on Grounds
In addition to boosting her academic efforts, Spyredes explored other opportunities on Grounds that provided exposure to different avenues of business. She joined the Virginia Consulting Group (VCG), which has taught her a lot about working with real-world businesses to solve actual problems. “It’s really one of the reasons I’m so excited to now be in McIntire,” she says. “Not every school provides students with the opportunity to speak with clients while they’re still in school and allow you to work on a true project. I can’t wait to begin breaking down business problems in the classroom. It’s something very unique to McIntire.”
Spyredes is also looking forward to meeting new people, learning their stories, and connecting with others who are driven and dedicated to enhancing their UVA experiences. She’s gotten a taste of that from her work with the Solar Car Team at UVA, where she now serves as the Director of Operations.
“They are honestly some of the nicest and smartest people I’ve ever met,” she says. “It’s also shown me that business, specifically tech, is really multifaceted. I love Solar Car because I am the link between our engineers, who are brilliant, and the investors, whom we are asking for money. I’m the middleman who translates the technical aspects of what we’re doing.”
Finding Her Way Back to the Field
Rewinding back to the end of her first year on Grounds, Spyredes was burned out and ready to focus on school and non-athletic activities. But there was a little inkling inside of her that made her feel that her athletic journey at UVA wasn’t entirely complete.
“I talked with my mom, and she reminded me that I would never feel satisfied about everything that happened with lacrosse if I still wondered, ‘what if?’” she says. “She encouraged me to give it another try.”
Not only did she make the team during walk-on tryouts, Spyredes went on to play in four games during the 2024 season and is also playing a part in the team’s continued success during the 2025 season.
“I’m truly grateful to everyone who helped me get back to lacrosse and for the entire program for welcoming me with open arms. I have amazing teammates, coaches, and support system around me, and I wouldn’t be here without them,” Spyredes says. “I can’t wait to see how we do this year. I know we are going to be amazing.”
Whether she’s rowing on the water, running on the field, or walking through the halls of McIntire, one thing is certain for Spyredes, her experiences at UVA have fortified her resilience to take future challenges and setbacks head-on.
“I think being able to share my experiences of being on two Division I sports teams really helped me get into McIntire because I needed a lot of strength and determination my first two years at UVA,” she says. “I’ve had to really learn how to pivot, which is a skill that I know will be very important for a career in business.”
