From Student-Athlete to Surgeon, UMW Alumna Comes Home to Fredericksburg

September 1, 2026

Sarah Hertz Mahoney

A female doctor in green scrubs with hair covering stands in a medical office room practicing with surgical instruments, a coworker in the background. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce. — UMW alumna and former women’s lacrosse student-athlete Sabrina Elliott ’17 has returned to Fredericksburg as a general surgery resident at Mary Washington Healthcare. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

Long before Sabrina Elliott ’17 picked up a scalpel, it was a lacrosse stick that led her to the University of Mary Washington. There, she found a place to compete as a student-athlete while building the academic foundation for a future in medicine.

More than a decade later, her pursuit of a career in surgery has brought her back to Fredericksburg – just down the road from the campus where her journey began – as a general surgery resident at Mary Washington Healthcare.

“Fredericksburg is very much home,” said Elliott, who grew up in Northern Virginia and discovered Mary Washington while being recruited to play college lacrosse. She remembers stepping onto the UMW campus and feeling an immediate sense of belonging. “It was just comfortable,” she said. “There’s this sense of community you get when you walk on campus.”

Elliott wanted a school where she could compete as an athlete without compromising academics. At UMW, she majored in biology and minored in chemistry while preparing for medical school and competing on the women’s lacrosse team, serving as captain her senior year. She also embraced the liberal arts and sciences, taking classes in Spanish, math, logic, public speaking, history and art. She still uses the Spanish she learned with patients today.

“I found that liberal arts schools have taught me how to think, not just what to think,” she said.

A female doctor in green scrubs with a face mask, clear goggles and hair covering stands in front of a sink scrubbing her hands to prepare to perform surgery. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

A female doctor in blue scrubs with a face mask, clear goggles and hair covering stands next to a surgical table with an instrument in her hand. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

A woman in green scrubs and hair covering stands next to a male coworker in scrubs and a grey zip-ip jacket looking at a computer screen. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

A close-up of a pair of hands practicing sutures on a flesh colored plastic mat. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

Sabrina Elliott ’17 practices surgical skills as part of her general surgery residency at Mary Washington Healthcare. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

Elliott is completing a five-year general surgery residency at Mary Washington Healthcare in Fredericksburg. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

Elliott was drawn to Mary Washington Healthcare’s small residency cohort and the opportunity to help define a relatively new program. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

Surgical training requires residents to develop and refine hands-on skills such as suturing. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

But her UMW experience also stretched beyond coursework and athletics. When her mother was diagnosed with scleroderma, a rare autoimmune disease, Elliott wanted to better understand what caused the condition. She channeled that curiosity into undergraduate research with Professor of Biological Sciences Lynn Lewis, now director of UMW’s Irene Piscopo Rodgers School of Science. Together, they developed a research protocol to investigate fibrosis and how cellular stress might relate to the disease.

Elliott remembers approaching the project with the ambition of an enthusiastic undergrad hoping to solve a mammoth problem. Lewis helped her turn that aspiration into concrete scientific inquiry. “She sat with me. We made a protocol together,” Elliott said. “She was wonderful.”

The experience highlights several close relationships Elliott built with Mary Washington science faculty, including Professor of Biology Deborah O’Dell, Professor of Chemistry Davis Oldham and Professor of Biology Dianne Baker, chair of the Department of Biological Sciences.

Meanwhile, Elliott was learning to balance a demanding schedule. Along with coursework and year-round lacrosse commitments, she spent several hours a week on research and landed a job as a medical assistant at a Fredericksburg dermatology practice, gaining hands-on clinical experience. Looking back, she laughs at her determination to do it all – academics, athletics, research and clinical work – at once.

After graduating from UMW, Elliott went on to Georgetown University, where she earned a master’s degree in clinical and translational research while working in clinical trials. At first, she imagined a career developing pharmaceutical treatments for disease. But then she got to know her patients. “I realized I really wanted the other side of it,” Elliott said. “I wanted the patient side of care.”

That realization led her to St. George’s University School of Medicine, where she earned an M.D., and then back to Fredericksburg for a five-year general surgery residency at Mary Washington Healthcare. After spending several years away from Virginia, Elliott wanted to be closer to family and to the community where she already had roots.

A female doctor in blue scrubs with a face mask, clear goggles and hair covering stands at a surgical table. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

A female doctor in light blue scrubs in a classroom demonstrates suturing to high school students taking summer enrichment courses. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

Sabrina Elliott in light blue scrubs smiles next to her former Professor of Biology Deborah O’Dell wearing a peach colored sweater. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

In a classroom a female doctor helps a student learn to suture while other students in the room also practice. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

Elliott participates in a surgical training session at Mary Washington Healthcare in Fredericksburg, where she returned for her surgical residency after earning her M.D. from St. George’s University School of Medicine. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

Elliott demonstrates suturing techniques for aspiring healthcare professionals in UMW’s Summer Enrichment Program. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

Elliott reconnects with Professor of Biology Deborah O’Dell, a former professor of Elliott’s and one of several UMW science faculty members she credits as mentors. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

Elliott helps a Summer Enrichment Program student practice suturing, offering the kind of hands-on guidance and mentorship that helped shape her own path. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

“I knew when I applied for the program that I would be joining something that was growing,” said Elliott, who was drawn to the small cohort and the opportunity to help define a relatively new program. “I’d be able to contribute to the culture, not just run right through it.”

As Elliott continues building her career, she’s also beginning to offer others the kind of guidance that shaped her. This summer, she worked with high-school students in UMW’s Summer Enrichment Program, helping aspiring healthcare professionals practice surgical skills during a visit to Mary Washington Healthcare.

Her advice for students considering medicine begins with seeking meaningful clinical experiences early, building relationships and finding mentors. Just as important, she said, is developing a life beyond grades and résumés. “Remember you’re more than just your GPA,” she said.

Elliott still has several years of surgical residency ahead and may eventually pursue a fellowship. Exactly where her path will lead remains open. But she can imagine a future that includes teaching and mentoring – and perhaps continuing to call Fredericksburg home.

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