Meet the girls
Best friends Ashley Tutzauer and Brianna Blair compete, socialize and live together.
Both women are early childhood education and special education majors and play several sports alongside each other. Blair, a sophomore, plays both soccer and basketball. Tutzauer, also a sophomore, plays soccer, basketball and lacrosse. Blair is a Havertown resident, while Tutzauer is from Toms River, New Jersey, over 80 miles away.
Blair enjoys soccer the most as it comes very naturally to her. She has been playing the sport since she was a child and is quite good at it. Last year she started in 17 matches and had a season high two shots against Lehman. She plays back on the women’s soccer team and is a forward on the women’s basketball team.
Tutzauer has a special love for basketball.
“I think I’ve been playing basketball since like right out of the womb,” Tutzauer said. “I was always in the gym shooting.”
She comes from an athletic family with a basketball coach for a mom. She is currently a point guard for the women’s basketball team. She averages 10 minutes per game and 3.6 points per game. She is a goalkeeper and forward for the women’s soccer team and midfield for lacrosse.
Friendship
Before fall of 2017, Ashley and Brianna were strangers. Now, they are nothing short of sisters. They initially met through a Cabrini Facebook group, but didn’t know they were more connected than they thought. Unbeknownst to them, Ashley’s cousin went to a school that Brianna’s dad taught in.
The girls live on campus together in a triple with a fellow soccer teammate. They live in a house that is occupied by five other women’s basketball players, making it the unofficial “basketball house.” Living with a friend can be difficult for some people, but Blair and Tutzauer love living together. Most of their time is spent together, growing their sisterly bond in more ways than one.
Busy days
They describe their days as “packed” from morning to night. Sometimes they are so busy they hardly have time to sit down and enjoy a meal at the cafe. Most days start off early. On easier days, they hang out at The Bean in between classes. Because they share the same major most classes they have are together. After class they have practice and tend to have a full schedule until one in the morning.
Even though juggling academics and several sports is difficult, they have a positive outlook and make the best out of it.
“I feel like we keep each other on track,” Blair said.
“I write all of my practices down and color code each sport,” Tutzauer said.
They have plenty of friends on each team and see practice and games as fun. Their teammates are their family. The relationship they have with each other takes the intensity out of the sport.
