Going from one win to six wins and the program's first conference tournament game was an impressive step for Ashland University's women's lacrosse team in 2022.
The Eagles will begin to find out this week what the next steps will be in 2023, but contending for a Great Midwest Athletic Conference championship is one of the goals of the fifth edition of AU women's lacrosse this spring.
"We've added a lot of fresh faces," noted second-year Ashland head coach
Lauren Simko. "The girls have gained a lot of confidence from last year, and understand that they can compete with some of these top teams. We've had an awesome preseason. They are energized. They are ready to go."
In the five-team Great Midwest this spring, Ashland was picked to finish third, but it was tight among preseason favorite Walsh, No. 2 Findlay and the Eagles.
"We know we can hang with them," Simko said. "We're still young…but knowing that we can and should hang with them has definitely kept us going through the preseason."
Ashland's 2023 season opens on Saturday (Feb. 18) at noon at West Virginia Wesleyan. The home opener is Feb. 26 at noon against Wilmington, Del., at Ferguson Field. After that, the Eagles will play three games in Florida on March 6, 8 and 10, including against No. 15-ranked Lynn on March 8.
"We are playing some of the top teams in D-II," Simko said. "Those games are gearing us for conference play. We're excited to test our ability against some of the best teams in the nation."
Leading Ashland's attackers is senior
Cassady Becker, the reigning Great Midwest Attacker of the Year who is coming off a 50-goal, 63-point season a year ago. But the Eagles also boast veteran depth in senior
Emily Jewell (15 goals, 12 assists last year), sophomore
Camryn English (13 goals, 11 assists), and fifth-year
Isabelle Pisani (17 goals).
"We are pushing to have a very balanced attack this year," said Simko. "Everybody's a threat. We've got girls that are finding their way with this attack group.
"She's (Becker) continuing to elevate her teammates. So now, it's not just relying on Cass Becker to score goals. And she's helping everybody. She's got a target on her back this year."
In the midfield, fifth-year
Natalie Sonntag ranks as one of the top players in the program's infancy. Last spring, she posted 45 goals and 54 points. Both Becker and Sonntag were first-team All-Great Midwest selections in 2022, and senior midfielder
Madie Gash (22 goals, 12 assists) was third-team all-league.
"She's had a really good preseason, as well," said Simko of Sonntag.
Ashland boasts a really deep defense corps which is led by last year's second-team all-conference choice, junior
Alexis Montalvo, and last year's third-team all-league selection, junior
Talia DiLello.
"We have a lot of juniors that have a lot of experience, and they're a pretty solid, cohesive unit right now," Simko said. "They trust each other, which is huge on defense, and they communicate well."
On the last line of defense, in goal, senior
Jillian Rekulak (5-6 record, 11.31 goals-against average) is the returning starter, but depth has been added there, as well, in the form of freshmen
Maria Mancuso and
Madi Lindh.
"We've got Jill, who's looked good. She's ready to step up in goal," Simko said. "She has competition which she didn't have last year."
The spring of 2023 is shaping up to be the continuation of the growth of Ashland women's lacrosse.
"It is super fun to be a part of it," said Simko. "The second this fall started, they were very excited. It's an exciting time."
