A new season is nearly here for the No. 12-ranked Boston University lacrosse team. The Terriers will open the 2010 campaign on the road today against the University of Massachusetts-Amherst at 4 p.m. at Richard F. Garber Field.
BU returns 10 starters from last year’s team that went 15-4 and won the America East Championship before being eliminated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Terriers are once again the team to beat in the AE, unanimously selected by the conference’s coaches to take home the league title.
UMass (2-1) is already three games deep into the 2010 season. The Minutewomen opened the season with a loss, an 18-6 massacre to No. 1-ranked, 2009 NCAA Champion Northwestern University. UMass has since recovered and put together two wins against the College of the Holy Cross and the University of Connecticut.
The Minutewomen hold a 12-6 series advantage all-time against the Terriers, but BU has won the last six of the seven contests. Last season the Terriers defeated UMass 15-5 at Nickerson Field in their 2009 home opener.
Seniors McKinley Curro, Rachel Klein, Traci Landy and Jenny Martin were chosen as the captains for the 2010 squad. Attackers Curro and Landy finished last season with 71 and 63 points, respectively, good for second and third on the team. Landi finished third overall in the conference in scoring with 52 goals.
Martin started all 19 games last season for the Terriers. As the only senior in the midfield, she will provide valuable veteran experience to those younger players around her. She also is acknowledged as one of the best defenders on the team.
Senior goalkeeper Klein provides a veteran presence in net for the Terriers. A two-year starter, Klein returns as captain from last year’s squad. She received AE Second Team honors as a sophomore and junior and ranks third in program’s history in saves and fourth in goals against average.
Unlike the Terriers, who can rely on an experienced group of seniors, the Minutewomen have been led by a core of young players.
The top four scorers for UMass consist of a junior, two sophomores and a freshman. Junior midfielder Jackie Lyons and sophomore midfielder Danielle Pelletier both have five goals so far this season. Last season Lyons led the team offensively with 44 goals and 27 assists.
Last season sophomore midfielder Jesse O’Donnell finished the season with no goals. This season she leads the team with nine goals, five coming in the win against Holy Cross. O’Donnell also earned Atlantic 10 Performer of the Week. Freshman attacker Lauren Terracciano is starting her collegiate career off on the right foot with eight goals and two assists to lead the Minutewomen offensively.
In net for UMass will be sophomore Katie Florence, who has a GAA of 11.04 and a .392 save percentage. Last season Florence helped lead her team to an A-10 championship and to its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 1985.
On paper, Wednesday’s season opener should be a walk in the park for the Terriers. But UMass has also been predicted to win the Atlantic 10, and last season during the Terriers’ first away game they narrowly escaped a loss against the College of William &’ Mary.
The Terriers march to a sixth straight AE title begins tomorrow.
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