Season Preview (WD3): Top 20 Team Outlooks
by Lacrosse Magazine staff
1. Gettysburg
2011 Record: 19-4 (8-1 Centennial
Conference)
Key Player: Hannah Church set records with 26
goals and 29 points in the NCAA tournament, including eight points
in the final.
X-Factor: Experience. The defending champs lost
just two starters.
2. TCNJ
2011 Record: 20-1 (5-0 NJAC)
Key Player: Leigh Mitchell is TCNJ's all-time
assists leader.
X-Factor: Senior midfielder Kathleen Notos, who
led the Lions with 74 goals, will take on an even bigger role
following Ali Jaeger's graduation.
3. Cortland
2011 Record: 21-2 (8-0 SUNYAC)
Key Player: All-time scoring leader Lindsay Abbot
(62g, 76a) also makes impact on draw controls (95), defense and
transition game.
X-Factor: Goaltending. Cortland played two
sophomores in the NCAA semifinals. Ally Levy and Shauna Hutchinson
could split time.
4. Hamilton
2011 Record: 18-2 (8-0 Liberty League)
Key Player: Rachel Friedman returns with her
team-best 70 goals.
X-Factor: Defenders Lauren Sokol, Meg Pengue and
Josie Jones have lined up together their entire NCAA careers for
NESCAC-bound Hamilton.
5. Franklin and Marshall
2011 Record: 19-3 (9-0 Centennial
Conference)
Key Player: Cat Serpe (35g, 19a) draws and runs
transition game.
X-Factor: Teammates voted Maggie Mae Shields (40
GBs) as MVP.
6. Salisbury
2011 Record: 19-3 (8-0 CAC)
Key Player: Allie Wheatley (46g) is a two-way
beast (20 CTs).
X-Factor: Junior defender Cat Gartner emerged as
the anchor of a defense that allowed the seventh fewest goals in
Division III.
7. Trinity
2011 Record: 18-1 (9-0 NESCAC)
Key Player: Three-time All-American midfielder Liz
Bruno has an uncanny ability to create turnovers, causing a
team-high 43 in 2011.
X-Factor: Trinity must replace NESCAC POY Rachel
Romanowsky.
8. Middlebury
2011 Record: 11-6 (6-3 NESCAC)
Key Player: Lily Nguyen (9.25 GAA, .510 sv pct),
the reigning IWLCA Division III Goalkeeper of the Year, is the
Panthers' captain.
X-Factor: Athleticism. Six Middlebury players also
played field hockey in the fall, and one played on the ice hockey
team.
9. Bowdoin
2011 Record: 18-4 (7-2 NESCAC)
Key Player: Carolyn Gorajek (51g, 15a) has started
since day one.
X-Factor: Experience. The Polar Bears return eight
seniors from the team that made that unlikely run to the NCAA final
and upset TCNJ.
10.Tufts
2011 Record: 12-7 (5-4 NESCAC)
Key Player: Stephanie Perez (32g) wins most 50/50
balls.
X-Factor: Senior defender Katie Lotz returns from
injury to lead an already-deep defense.
11. Colby
2011 Record: 15-5 (6-3 NESCAC)
Key Player: Junior All-American attacker Kate
Pistel's late heroics in a wild 6-5 NCAA tourney win over Hamilton
spoke volumes.
X-Factor: Claire Donegan came back strong after
her ankle injury.
12. Messiah
2011 Record: 18-2 (12-0 MAC)
Key Player: Junior goalie Taylor Phillips (5.18
GAA, .572 sv pct) plays an aggressive style that one rival coach
described as "scary."
X-Factor: Senior Rachel Coyle (47 DCs) anchors
Messiah's defense with an aggressive, turnover-causing style of
play.
13. Amherst
2011 Record: 9-6 (4-5 NESCAC)
Key Player: Senior defender Meredith LaRose boasts
excellent instincts and fast footwork, leading to turnovers and
transition.
X-Factor: Evolution of six sophomores who saw
significant time.
14. Washington and Lee
2011 Record: 15-5 (9-0 ODAC)
Key Player: Sophomore midfielder Alex Van Horn
ranked fifth in Division III with 5.45 draw controls per game in
2011.
X-Factor: Senior Christina Benedetti, a regional
All-American defender, will have an expanded role in the
midfield.
15. Stevens
2011 Record: 16-4 (8-0 Empire 8)
Key Player: Senior attacker Michelle Buonacuore,
the Ducks' top returning scorer, had 39 goals and a team-high 26
assists in 2011.
X-Factor: Brains and balance. Stevens has been
named an Academic Honor Squad for nine years running.
16. Catholic
2011 Record: 15-4 (4-0 Landmark Conference)
Key Player: Gifted midfielder Mary Swarthout, a
senior, led the Cardinals with 65 goals and 117 points last
year.
X-Factor: Defense. Led by "the Megs" —
Meghan Murray and Megan Gormley — Catholic's transition game
starts with its defense.
17. Bates
2011 Record: 9-7 (4-5 NESCAC)
Key Player: Senior attacker Joan O'Neill had 44
goals and 70 points in 2011 and led the NESCAC in points per
game.
X-Factor: The draw. Senior Jenna Dannis (56) and
junior Jenn Braillier (48) combined to help Bates lead the NESCAC
in 2011.
18. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
2011 Record: 16-3 (10-0 SCIAC)
Key Player: Madi Shove's 79 goals ranked 11th in
Division III.
X-Factor: New coach Heather Semelmacher brings an
impressive resume (Marist and New Paltz) to the West's top
program.
19. Adrian
2011 Record: 16-5 (6-0 Midwest Conference)
Key Player: Rachel Johnson (89g) is top returning
scorer in DIII.
X-Factor: New coach Rachel Cibulas returns to
Adrian, where as an assistant coach she helped land school's best
recruiting class.
20. Ithaca
2011 Record: 11-7 (6-2 Empire 8)
Key Player: Nicole Borisenok returns with
team-leading 53 goals.
X-Factor: New Ithaca coach Shannon McHale
previously led St. John Fisher to top-20 territory.
This article appears in the February issue of Lacrosse Magazine, the flagship publication of US Lacrosse. Join US Lacrosse and its 400,000-plus members today to start your subscription to LM.
