The women’s lacrosse season is almost here so let’s the ball rolling. Last season the Chargers went 15-5 overall and 11-2 in a tough NE-10 Conference. New Haven showed their dominance at home going 8-1 with their only loss coming in a 14-11 loss to No. 3 Le Moyne. Their other NE-10 Conference loss came at the hands of No.1 ranked Adelphi on the road. Last season ended early for the Chargers as they were knocked out of both the NE-10 Tournament semifinals and the NCAA second round by Adelphi. This season the Chargers were picked to finish third in the NE-10 Conference behind perennial powerhouses Adelphi and Le Moyne. New Haven also ranked eighth nationally in the 2018 IWLCA Division II Top-25 poll. The Chargers will look to take this pressure and use it to their advantage.         

In 2018 the Chargers will be returning 16 players, but will have a new look as they lost the majority of their scoring to the 2017 senior class. This high-powered offense will be losing a combined 143 goals scored from seniors Kendall Cietek (61), Nicole Bellinger (32), and Caitlin O’Brien (50) in 2017. This season the team will be led by seniors Jessica Mazliah and Courtney Duffy. Last season Mazliah was a huge factor on the offensive end as she contributed 37 goals, and 48 assists, which ranked her second in the NE-10 Conference.

On the defensive side, Duffy recovered 39 ground balls and caused 24 turnovers landing her on the NE-10 All- Conference Third Team. Even though this team only has two seniors, it still has a lot of juniors and sophomores that logged heavy minutes and have plenty of NE-10 Conference experience.

Some notable juniors that will help this offense return to form are Midfield Mackenzie Reh and Attack Samantha Galler. Last season Reh started 19 games for the Chargers, scoring 23 goals to go along with eight assists for a total of 31 points. Reh also recovered 30 ground balls and forced nine turnovers on the defensive end for the Chargers. Galler started all 20 games for the Chargers contributing 20 goals and six assists for a total of 26 points. She scored at least one goal in 15 straight games, spanning from March 12, 2017 against Tiffin all the way to May 3  against Assumption.

Another offensive contributor that will look to step up this season is sophomore Attack Hailey Rattigan. In her freshman year, Rattigan appeared in 20 games recording 19 goals and one assist for a total of 20 points.

On the defensive side for New Haven, head coach Jen Fallon will employ two sophomore goalkeepers in Gianna Guerra and Erica Rinsky. In her first season, Guerra received 13 starts, recording 65 saves while accumulating a .353 save percentage. Rinsky, on the other hand, received seven starts, recorded 67 saves and accumulated a .429 save percentage. As a collective unit Guerra and Rinsky contributed 15 wins combined for the Chargers last season.

New Haven will start their season on Wednesday, Feb. 28 as they take on Bridgeport on the road. The Chargers will play their first home game on Saturday, March 17 when they take on NE-10 rival Franklin Pierce at 1 p.m.