Women's Lacrosse | February 21, 2017

PHILADELPHIA- The lacrosse team will open the 2017 season on Wednesday in the team's first ever meeting with Manhattan. The Explorers face off at 7:00 PM at McCarthy Stadium in search of a win to set the pace for the spring season.

The team is armed with plans to chase an Atlantic 10 title, returning 14 starters and adding 14 new rookies to the lineup.

"One of the things we've been focusing on this season is chemistry, really trying to integrate the new faces with some of our returning players, using their leadership to help those players develop and not be freshman anymore and using some of the new talent we have coming in," said head coach Candace Taglianetti Bossell.  

La Salle looks to improve from a 3-6 conference record last year and 5-11 overall record, missing postseason play by just one seed. The Explorers plan to clinch a chance in the championship tournament this year by building on small successes throughout the season.

"Anytime you go into a season, of course everyone wants to win an A-10 Championship, that's why we're here. We eat, sleep, and breathe that goal," said Taglianetti Bossell. "But I think we also have to focus on short term goals… we need to work on having small victories and small successes."

Controlling the offensive play will be returner Alee Ilgenfritz, who ranked second on the team with 29 goals and led the team with 13 assists in 2016. Ilgenfritz grabbed 13 ground balls a season ago and finished with 7 draw controls while being named Second Team All-Atlantic 10.

La Salle will also return key scorer Brittany Edwards, a junior who contributed 25 goals last season while adding 11 assists to rank second on the team. Edwards will be a key for possession control as she finished last year with 13 ground balls and 25 draw controls.

"In the offseason we've really been working on having a much more balanced attack and with a lot of new rules in place like a shot clock, we're really looking to have quicker and faster opportunities on the offensive end and really use defensive plays as a start to a counterattack," said Taglianetti Bossell.

Midfielders Ashley Blanton, Rachel Ceplo, Katie Wherley and Anna Gordon will all return to the Blue and Gold. Blanton picked up 10 groundballs and 11 draw controls in her 2016 campaign, while adding a goal for La Salle. Ceplo, an elected captain, grabbed eight ground balls and 25 draw controls last season, while Gordon added five groundballs and two goals.

Among the returning defensive players will be captains Danielle Strang and Kiara Lynch. Both appeared in all 16 games last season, while contributing a total of 22 ground balls and causing 16 turnovers. 

Goalkeeper Lucy Loughlin will don her La Salle jersey again as a returning goalie after she split time in the net during her sophomore year campaign. Loughlin ranked 8^th in A-10 with a 6.38 save percentage and will be a staple for La Salle's defense this year.

The Explorers will aim to translate what they have prepared in the offseason onto the field on Wednesday against the Jaspers.
 
"In terms of preparation we want to take the things we've been working on and translate them onto the field. We want to incorporate the plays we've been working on, we want to incorporate our speed and our athleticism, we feel those are our strengths," said Taglianetti Bossell. "We don't expect to play a mistake free game, first games there are a little bit of jitters, a little more mistakes, but it's really about having the intensity and really working on the consistency for the sixty minutes, that would be our ultimate goal."

La Salle faces off at 7:00 PM at McCarthy Stadium to get the 2017 season underway.