Guilford College’s women’s lacrosse team will see the return of 15 students, including 10 starters from last year. In addition, Head coach Charlotte Dixon, who is starting her second season, added five first-years. Last year’s squad finished with a 6-10 record, going 1-7 in conference. This year, the Quakers look to improve upon that mark and make an impact in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC).

“We definitely didn’t finish how we wanted to finishing 6-10,” said senior attacker Hannah Rossheim. “There were a few games where we could have won but didn’t play to our potential. I can’t wait to see what this team has to prove.”

The team returns their sole All-ODAC selection, junior midfielder Madison Iandoli. Iandoli lead the team in goals (39) as well as points (48). Her total of 39 goals put her in the top 15 in the ODAC. Sophomore midfielder Nia Gill returns following a first-year campaign in which she scored 26 points and lead the team with 65 draw controls.

“I think last season was a really great learning experience for me as a (first-year),” said  Gill. “It was a good transition from high school athletics to college athletics, and the overall experience gave me a new confidence for this upcoming season.”

Also, on offense the Quakers will return senior midfielder Holly Kozak, who totaled 27 goals and was equal with sophomore attacker Audrey Helfenbein for second on the team with 33 points. Sophomore attacker Grace Moore paced the team in assists last year (12) and was followed by Iandoli who tallied nine.

The Quakers look to replace a key starter in the place of class of 2018 Sarah Sedaghat. The goalkeeper started all 16 games for the team, during which she amassed 139 saves, which ranked fourth in the ODAC. Sedaghat also served as a captain on last year’s team.

Sophomore goalkeeper Kersten Daneau will be replacing Sedaghat in goal for the Quakers this season. Last season, Daneau made five appearances in which she totaled eight saves. The defense will be assisted by two seniors, Amber Dubois and Hannah Cohen. Dubois totaled 27 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers in 2017-18, statistics that both ranked third on the team.

This season, seniors Hannah Rossheim and Holly Kozak fill the roles of co-captains.

“One of our main goals is going ‘ALL OUT’ on the field. That includes going all out for your teammates, having their back and being the best teammate and player you can be,” said Rossheim

The team was picked eighth out of 10 teams in the 2019 ODAC Preseason Poll. Despite that ranking the team is optimistic about the upcoming season.

“Personally it doesn’t bother me as I plan that we’ll beat a lot of the teams higher than us in the ODAC. Plus it’s fun proving people wrong,” said junior Abbie Horchar.

The team already has seen improvements since last season.

“We had a rough season last year,” said Gill. “This fall and the practices we’ve already had have been so much better with intensity and energy. Our level of play is faster and smarter and I’m excited to show our improvements.”

The women’s lacrosse team opens up their season with a home game vs. Southern Virginia before going on the road to play Marymount University.