After the graduation of 12 seniors last year, the girls’ lacrosse team has many more underclassmen this season compared to years past. The players look forward to building their skills this season.

“We’ve got a lot of players that are learning and have to push themselves to get their game up to the varsity level,” said assistant coach Joe Burwell.

Senior Captain Eva Muschkin agrees with Burwell. “Losing a whole team last year really hurt us…so this year, it’s a matter of teaching people the fundamentals so that we can form a better team in the future,” she said.

This lack of experience with lacrosse is a challenge to be overcome.

“The number of years they have been playing just leads to a need for skill development and learning of the game,” said head coach Jen Tramer.

Including a lack of experience, there are numerous other components that must be refined. A major problem is defense.

“We are really rebuilding our defense and part of our midfield. We work on our defense every day,” said Burwell.

However, in spite of their weaknesses, the team also has quite a few strong points. Coach Tramer feels that a major asset of the squad is their athleticism. Athleticism helps in another area: offense. The team has a handful of players that can attack the goal effectively and work well together.

As it is just the preseason, the girls’ lacrosse team has a lot to look forward to.

“What I’m looking forward to is playing games, and also building new relationships and making new friends,” said freshman Daniella Israelstam. This sums up the way most players feel approaching the season.

As the season approaches, the athletes feel hope and anticipation for what is to come. Coach Tramer expresses this excitement. “Once their skills catch up with their athleticism, I think we’re going to be really good, so I’m excited to see that happen,” she said.

With all of the hard work and hours put in by the team, they will surely achieve this expectation and much more.