After a dismal 4-13 season
in 2012, the LU women’s
lacrosse team has completed an
impressive turnaround in their
first season in the Big South
Conference.
Head Coach Elaine Jones
has spearheaded a six-game
turnaround, completed by a
19-12 Senior Day victory by the
Lancers (10-7, 5-2 Big South)
over in-state archrival Liberty on
Saturday.
After a 4-0 start, the team
finished the regular season 6-7,
alternating wins and losses.
The 5-2 Big South mark is good
enough for a third seed in the
first-ever Big South Tournament,
taking place this weekend at
Davidson College in Davidson,
N.C.
Against Liberty, Longwood took
a 7-5 lead into the locker room
and never looked back.
Jones said, “We did start a
little slow. I think, always, the
emotion of Senior Day takes
its toll here and there, but we
started three of our four seniors
… after a bit of a slow start, the
team put it together; it was a
great performance on the day,
and it was nice to see a lot of
people getting a chance to play
and score some goals.”
Junior Lauren Prasnicki
and senior Jamie Brentlinger
combined for six goals and nine
assists on Saturday; Prasnicki
leads the team with 50 assists
while Brentlinger and freshman
Katie McHugh lead the team
with an unprecedented 47 goals
each.
“I think they’ve done a great
job this year,” Jones said of her
seniors, “I think I was another
coach over the course of their
four years, and they handled it
really well. The transition was,
I’d say, flawless. They were just
really supportive from the getgo. They had a really enjoyable
year and learned a lot and
improved.”
Friday night, the first round of
the four-team tournament sees
host and top seed Davidson
take on Liberty before the
Lancers play High Point at 7
p.m. The Panthers knocked off
Longwood, 13-8, at home on
March 27. Four days earlier,
Davidson beat Longwood 17-
7, also at home.
On the postseason, Jones
said, “We’re excited to be one
of the four teams [in], and we
look forward to getting another
crack at High Point and then
Davidson.
“We didn’t play well [against
High Point or Davidson].
[Against] High Point we had a
ton of turnovers, and our heads
weren’t where they should
have been. I think we’re a better
team now; I’m sure they’re a
better team. Our players are just
smarter and know what it takes
when you get down in a game,
and I think they get the ability
to come back. I also know they
have the ability to execute better
now.”
On a related note, McHugh was
named the Big South’s Freshman
of the Week on Monday by the
league office.
It’s the second time this season
she’s earned the honor.
