She reaches into her pocket and whips out her smartphone. After locating her Google Calendar, various colors reflect her tasks for the day: green represents lacrosse, while blue stands for school and red symbolizes NROTC. 
 
The color-coded schedule is how Jacksonville University women's lacrosse member, Hannah Carolan, organizes herself to maintain her active schedule.
 
"I always organize my schedule at the beginning of the semester," she said. "But, I am always adding in events as they come up and I check my calendar multiple times a day to make sure I am on track."
 
Carolan is a junior studying kinesiology and a member of NROTC (Naval Reserve Officer Training Course), in addition to being part of the nationally ranked JU women's lacrosse program. Her major, paired with both time-consuming activities, keeps Carolan on her toes 24/7.
 
During the semester, she wakes before sunrise to join NROTC for conditioning before heading to her classes for the day. Once classes are over, she adds two more hours of exercise at lacrosse practice, which is sometimes followed by watching film and engaging in scouting reports depending on if the team is in season.
 
"My schedule varies depending on the day, but there are times where I condition three times a day between lacrosse and NROTC," Carolan said. "Those days can be really tiring."
 
Despite her intense workload, Carolan holds herself to a high-standard in both her activities and coursework.
 
During her three years at JU, she has been named to the Dean's List three times and the President's List once. She was recently given the honor of being named Battalion Commander for her class in NROTC.
 
"Being the Battalion Commander is an honor you have to be hand-picked for," NROTC Captain Adam Dierker, USMC, said. "Hannah is at the top of her class in fitness, has earned merit honors, leadership roles and good grades, so we knew she would be the best role-model for our program." 
 
JU NROTC is a four-year program that presents individuals with opportunities to gain leadership skills, physical training and professional development. Training and involvement usually add up to 20-30 hours per week.
 
Carolan has participated in the Marine Corps branch of NROTC since her freshman year. Despite not having any previous NROTC experience, she was able to earn a scholarship that is tough for even those who have been involved in the program for years.
 
"My dad was in the Navy, so I did grow up around it, but going to NROTC orientation my freshman year at JU I had no idea what to expect," Carolan said. "The event started with loud yelling from the officers and I was completely taken by surprise."
 
Her long-term goal is to land a job in the aviation side of the Marine corps.
 
"I am trying to achieve an aviation contract," Carolan said. "If I complete all of my training and receive the contract, I will then hopefully go to flight school."
 
Dierker has been with the JU NROTC program for three years. He touches on his first impression of Carolan and what makes her unique among others from her class.   
 
"When I first met Hannah, I immediately noticed her small stature, but was impressed by how she dominated in the physical aspect of NROTC," Dierker said. "She is the type of person who never lets anything hold her back. She is very positive and motivated, which is a rare trait to have in this industry."
 
Her hard work and motivation transfers over from NROTC to her actions on the lacrosse field.
 
Carolan has been playing lacrosse since middle school and caught the eye of McCord at an early age. She participated in the LaxManiax, a club lacrosse team in Jacksonville, before being recruited to play for the Dolphins. 
 
While she is currently the only member of the women's lacrosse team participating in NROTC, she is one of many student-athletes in the program involved in an additional organization. The team is known for not only being successful on the field, but also in the classroom. At the annual student-athlete awards banquet, the JAXPYS, the team took home the Team GPA award for the second straight year and always has many athletes on the Dean's List and President's List. 
 
"We pride ourselves in the fact that we have a 100 percent graduation rate and we send girls to the next level, whether it be grad school or a full-time job," head coach Mindy McCord said. "Even the recruits come into their first year knowing how high the standard is because our girls set that tone a long time ago."
 
Carolan's tremendous amounts of time spent between the two organizations leaves no room for error when it comes to planning, especially when dates conflict.
 
While she rarely misses events for either NROTC or lacrosse, she is always communicating thoroughly on both sides to avoid a scheduling mistake.
 
"I've never been the coach to tell them they could not participate in an organization on campus and I knew that she wanted to participate in NROTC to help with her future career," McCord said. "All parties involved have to communicate and be willing to give that effort in order to help the student-athlete to be successful."
 
On her summer break she will be completing officer candidate school, a six-week program required for graduation. There, she will perform difficult mental and physical challenges that will test her ability to be a leader. When she returns to campus in the fall, Carolan will be a senior and heading into the last year of her JU journey.
 
"I just keep focusing on the end goal because I want so badly to be successful," Carolan said. "I could never do any of this without the support from my coaches, teammates and NROTC family. They are all a crucial part of this success."
 
Those who have gotten to know her over the years are not shocked by the amount of success she has achieved.
 
"She has always had a hard work-ethic, she will do anything you ask her to and she'll do it ten times better than anyone else." McCord said.