July 25, 2006

In 2006, the Georgetown women's lacrosse team continued to build on an already storied tradition. The Hoyas posted a 14-4 overall record, won its sixth straight BIG EAST Conference Championship and made its eighth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals. The Hoya defense, ranked second in the nation, allowed just 7.0 goals per game and Georgetown posted a 4-1 record in a program-high five overtime games. Additionally, the Hoyas recorded a 5-2 record in one-goal games.

The list of individual accolades was equally impressive.

Junior goalkeeper Maggie Koch became the fourth GU player to earn BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year honors while senior defender Stephanie Zodtner, senior midfielder Lucy Poole and junior attacker Coco Stanwick were named All-BIG EAST First Team.

Junior defenders Chloe Asselin and Laura Cipro were named All-BIG EAST Second Team.

Koch and Stanwick both earned a spot on the IWLCA Division I All-American First Team while Zodtner earned a spot on the IWLCA Division I Second Team. Koch was also named IWLCA Division I Goalkeeper of the Year. Junior Chloe Asselin and Laura Cipro were named IWLCA Regional All-America Second Teamers.

Asselin was named ESPN The Magazine Academic District II Second Team and Stanwick became the fourth Hoya to be named a Tewaaraton Trophy Finalist.

As a team, Georgetown began the season ranked No. 10/12 in the national polls and climbed all the way to the No. 3 ranking while seven players earned BIG EAST weekly honors on 12 different occasions.

Georgetown started the season with an 8-1 record with their only loss during the stretch coming at second-ranked Duke, 10-8. The first nine games saw two different four-game winning streaks and included overtime wins over fifth-ranked North Carolina and at sixth-ranked Maryland. After a last second loss at No. 15 Boston University, Georgetown won five of their final six regular-season games heading into the NCAA Tournament. Eight of their 14 victories came against teams ranked in the top-20 and Georgetown posted a 4-1 record in a single-season record five overtime games. In the process, the Hoyas extended their BIG EAST regular-season winning streak to 34 consecutive games. Georgetown drew the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and trounced Monmouth in the first round, 18-2. The Hoyas then had to go on the road in the Quarterfinals where GU fell at Notre Dame.

The starting defensive unit of goalkeeper Maggie Koch and defenders Stephanie Zodtner, Laura Cipro, Kristin Smith and Chloe Asselin were stellar all season helping to lead the Hoyas to the fifth-best defense in the history of the program. The defense yielded just 7.0 goals per game which ranked second in the nation.

Koch became the third Hoya goalie to earn the IWLCA Goalkeeper of the Year award. A Tewaaraton Trophy nominee, she recorded double-figure saves in eight games. The Philadelphia native led the nation with .564 save percentage and ranked second nationally allowing just 6.8 goals per game. Koch earned IWLCA First Team All-America honors in 2006 after making 167 saves and averaging just under 10 saves per contest.

Zodtner started in every game for the third straight season and earned All-BIG EAST First Team honors after ranking third on the team with 38 ground balls. The IWLCA Second Team All-American led the team with 22 caused turnovers. The emotional, co-captain concluded her career ranked fifth all-time with 88 caused turnovers and 15th all-time with 133 ground balls. Zodtner also added nine goals and three assists while playing on the squad's second midfield. Zodtner's game-tying goal as time expired in regulation sent the BIG EAST finale with Loyola into overtime. The Hoyas topped Loyola, 9-8 in an emotional rollercoaster, winning their sixth straight BIG EAST title and capped a perfect 7-0 mark at home.

Kristin Smith also started in every game for the third straight season and was a major contributor to the success of the defense, ranking among the team's leaders with 20 ground balls. Smith was one of the team's most consistent players.

Asselin was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic District II Second Team after tying for second on the team with 15 caused turnovers and her 32 ground balls ranked fifth on the team. An IWLCA Regional All-American, Asselin was a model of consistency and did all the intangible things that don't always end up in the final box score. Asselin recorded multiple caused turnovers in four games this season, all against teams ranked in the top 10.

Cipro battled a leg injury throughout the second half of the season and earned her first BIG EAST post-season award with all-league Second Team honors. Cipro also garnered IWLCA Regional Second Team recognition, tying for second on the team with 15 caused turnovers and ranked sixth on the team with 31ground balls. Cipro held up her reputation as being one of the nation's best one-on-one defenders holding UVa's Blair Weymuth and JMU's Kelly Berger to a combined one assist over the course of a three-game stretch.

Juniors Megan Ellis and Alison Rogers combined for 35 ground balls and eight caused turnovers and made significant contributions to the back line.

Junior Rachel Mech and sophomores Karla Herrera and Amelia Wesselink played well when given the opportunity and the trio continued to gain confidence.

Junior goalie Margaret Farland battled back from off-season injuries and helped develop the younger defensive players.

The starting midfield trio of Lucy Poole, Patty Piotrowicz and Jordan Trautman started in every game and combined for almost 20 percent of the Hoya's scoring output.

Poole posted her best individual single-season with 28 goals and six assists. Poole maximized her speed, athleticism and dodging ability and tallied eight of her 11 career multi-goal games in 2006. Poole was a major factor in helping to lead Georgetown to victories over sixth-ranked Princeton and Rutgers.

Piotrowicz started in every game as a sophomore and ranked second on the team with 42 ground balls. She handed out six assists to go along with three goals and ranked second on the team with 15 caused turnovers. Piotrowicz earned BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week accolades after collecting a career-high nine ground balls in the victory over UNC.

Freshman Jordan Trautman scored five goals to go along with two assists. She scored the game-tying goal with 2:41 left in regulation to help send the regular-season contest with Notre Dame into overtime.

Freshmen Courtney Hubschmann and Bridget Noon ran with Zodtner on the second midfield line and the duo combined for 15 goals and made significant contributions along the way. Hubschmann tallied her first career hat trick at Boston University and Noon scored four of her five goals in BIG EAST games. Hubschmann and Noon improved throughout the season and will be heavily relied upon in 2007.

Freshmen Megan Bloomer, Margot Ellis and Katie Burton pushed the starting midfielders consistently throughout the season and gave the coaching staff quality options.

Junior Coco Stanwick led the attack for the Hoyas. Stanwick became the fourth Georgetown player to earn IWLCA All-American First Team accolades in consecutive seasons and was among five national finalists for the Tewaaraton Trophy. The junior co-captain set a new NCAA single-season record with 113 draw controls and ranked second in the nation with 6.27 draws per game. She led the Hoyas with 60 goals and 73 points and collected a team-best 44 ground balls. An All-BIG EAST First Teamer who was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week three times, Stanwick ranked ninth in the country with 3.3 goals per game and scored at least four goals seven times.

Senior Paige Andrews had the best individual season of her career ranking fourth on the team with 21 goals and had the game-winning overtime goal in the BIG EAST Championship clinching win over Loyola. Andrews showed off her finishing ability coming into the season with 13 career points and topped that mark 11 games into the season.

Junior Sara Zorzi handed out 33 assists, the second best single-season mark in school history. Zorzi ranked sixth in the nation with 2.1 assists per game and had multi-assist games in all but five contests. Seventeen of Zorzi's 33 assists came on Stanwick goals. She showed an uncanny ability to distribute the ball to open attackers.

Junior Schuyler Sutton ranked second on the team in goals with 24 and assists with 13. Sutton had seven multi-goal games, posting four goals in the wins over No. 12 Johns Hopkins and fourth-ranked Virginia. She earned BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week honors after helping Georgetown battle back from a 4-0 first half deficit in the 8-7 win at Hopkins. Sutton improved tremendously as the season progressed after completely grasping the offensive system.

Junior Brittany Baschuk scored five goals in seven games before losing the rest of the season with a torn knee ligament. Baschuk tallied the game winning goal in three straight games, including the overtime wins over North Carolina and Maryland. Baschuk has showed improvement throughout her rehabilitation and will most likely be in the starting lineup in 2007.

Sophomore Zan Morley came off the bench to score 11 goals and became another formidable option to the offensive attack. Morley always provided a spark and has a knack for making things happen.

Freshman Bunny O'Reilly used her speed and athleticism to record four points on the season and made a smooth transition to the collegiate game. Freshmen Ashley Lopez and Anna McKenzie both came off the bench and added depth to the Hoya offense.

The 2006 Georgetown women's lacrosse team posted another successful season to say the least. The Hoyas showed a great amount of heart come crunch time and won four of their single-season high five overtime games. The 2006 team had a solid group of seniors in Paige Andrews, Lucy Poole, Kristin Smith and Stephanie Zodtner that helped lead Georgetown to a victory over Princeton, the first time the Hoyas topped the Tigers since 2002. As a group, Georgetown had a special brand of team chemistry that allowed the Hoyas to be a gritty bunch that refused to quit. The future of the program continues to look bright as coach Ricky Fried's staff returns 25 letterwinners, including eight starters.