Josephine Emanuelli
Preseason polls ranked the women’s lacrosse team fourth in the conference, but third year Head Coach Jane Karger has other plans for her team. She says, “We are ranked 4th in the conference and the goal and expectation is to surpass that by the end of the season.” Mia Campanale (‘19) echoes her coach’s sentiments, saying, “I think we have great potential for an amazing season.”
The team is freshman heavy with only two seniors, Sage Johnson (‘18) and Nicole Kinney (‘18). Both are captains and are excited to lead the team into the season. Last season, the Rangers qualified for the Landmark Conference tournament before falling to No. 1 ranked Catholic University, who eventually went on to win the conference and qualify for the NCAA tournament.
The team has been working hard to get ready for their next season, as Karger says, “The players have been working extremely hard for the last month, and we couldn’t be more excited to open up with our first home game next week.”
The Rangers open their 2018 campaign on Feb. 21 at 4 p.m. at Ranger Stadium against DeSales University. Last year, DeSales was Drew’s home opener and they beat them 17-6, so the Rangers will try to repeat that performance at their season opener this year. Karger is expecting her team to build off their past successes all season, saying, “While young, we have been learning a lot and preparing for the games to come. With some strong newcomers and experienced returners, we are looking to build off of our success from the last year and fill the shoes left by our Class of 2017.”
The Rangers will be seeing several of the same teams this year and will be looking to avenge their 8-12 loss to FDU in their third game this season as they travel down the road to face them on Feb. 28. The Rangers will not be in the cold for long, as they travel to North Carolina for spring break to play Guilford College and King’s College, before returning to Madison to prepare for conference play. The Rangers kick off conference play on March 24 against Catholic at home.
The women’s lacrosse team is sure to have an exciting season so go out and support them at their home opener on Wednesday!
