Lacrosse Opens 2020 Season At Home Against Howard, ECU

PC hosts the Bison on Friday at 3 pm, and the Pirates on Sunday at 12 pm

Clinton, S.C. - The Presbyterian College women's lacrosse team is set to begin the 2020 season at home against Howard on Friday, February 7, at 3 pm. The team will then have a quick turnaround and host East Carolina on Sunday, February 9, beginning at noon.

"We had an excellent preseason and are excited to open the year at home," first year head coach Eric Clakeley said. "The team has responded well to our new systems, and approach to the game. We are eager to finally get to put it to use against outside competition."

Clakeley elaborated, "I have leaned on my background as a defensive coach to build from the back to the front. We will pride ourselves in playing strong team defense and take a deliberate and fundamental approach on the offensive side."

Attack
Juniors Kelly Hyman and Sarah Marshall will shoulder the majority of the offensive burden of a unit that returns four of it's top-five offensive weapons. Marshall led the team with collegiate-bests in points (44), goals (30) and assists (14) last season. Their classmates Ana Boothe and Sophie Krist will also be key contributors along with sophomores Madison Berg and Ryann Doyle. Rounding out the unit is freshman Tayler Hofmeister.

Clakeley on the attack - "It was fun to watch the chemistry between Kelly, Sarah and Madison grow throughout the fall. Our attackers as a whole are a versatile group that can impact the game on the draw circle, in the redefend and of course hopefully on the scoreboard."

Midfield/Draw
Junior Kara DiClemente, sophomore Alyssa Cooke, and freshman Abby Edmisten will carry a bulk of the workload in the midfield. DiClemente is the team's leading returner with 16 caused turnovers last season, while Cooke finished second in assists (9). Junior Jordan Bryon made the transition to the midfield this fall, and will be joined by newcomers Madison Foti and Sophie Sullinger.

Expect to see Hyman, Krist, Doyle and Cooke improve on the program's draw statistics by utilizing a platoon approach.

Clakeley on the midfield/draw - "Playing midfield at PC is an incredibly difficult thing to do. We ask them to defend the opposing team's best driver, be a catalyst in the clear, create turnovers in the redefend, all while being an integral part of our offense. These six have embraced that challenge and I look forward to that continuing throughout the spring. We have improved drastically on the draw this preseason. They all have their own style and it's on us as a staff to call on the right style at the right time."

Defense/Goaltenders
Senior Bree Goldfarb, sophomores Carington Cantarella, Paige Gacek, Meredith Moore, freshmen Taryn Tomas, Juliana San Lucas and Ava Ward comprise the PC defensive group. Gacek led the team in ground balls last season (28), while Goldfarb is the most experienced field player on the team. Senior Kayla Koch and sophomore Heidi Shafer will mind the net for the Blue Hose.

Clakeley on the defense and goalies - "We are in a fortunate position where we have seven line defenders on the roster, all of whom can contribute on game day. I couldn't be more pleased with our goaltending situation, Kayla and Heidi's contrasting styles make for quite tandem in the cage."

Notables
Presbyterian is looking to start the year at 1-0 for the first time since 2016 when they defeated Delaware State, 20-11, in the season opener.

The Blue Hose have not played Howard since the 2016 season, when PC improved to 7-0 all-time against the Bison with a 20-7 decision in Washington, D.C.

Howard suffered several key injuries last season and finished 0-14. Their leading scorers were junior Jillian Jones (15 goals in 12 games), junior Lailah Robey (8 goals in 10 games) and sophomore Sydney Saunders (5 goals in 11 games).

East Carolina begins its 2020 campaign on the road against Furman on Friday night. Sunday's matchup at Bailey Memorial Stadium will be the first between PC and ECU in lacrosse.

Eric Clakeley became the sixth head coach in program history during the summer of 2019. He spent the previous two seasons at Lafayette College as the defensive coordinator. In his time with the Leopards, the team ranked highly within the Patriot League in save percentage and saves per game.

Friday's season opener at Bailey Memorial Stadium will be broadcast on ESPN+ beginning at 3 pm.

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Players Mentioned

#2 Madison Berg: MF; 5' 8"; Sophomore

#12 Ana Boothe: MF; 5' 4"; Junior

#17 Jordan Bryon: A; 5' 5"; Junior

#19 Carington Cantarella: D; 5' 6"; Sophomore

#3 Alyssa Cooke: MF; 5' 4"; Sophomore

#0 Kara DiClemente: MF; 5' 7"; Junior

#21 Ryann Doyle: A; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#8 Abby Edmisten: MF; 5' 9"; Freshman

#5 Madison Foti: MF; 5' 6"; Freshman

#10 Paige Gacek: D; 5' 6"; Sophomore

#6 Tayler Hofmeister: A; 5' 3"; Freshman

#22 Kelly Hyman: A; 5' 8"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Madison Berg
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: MF

#12 Ana Boothe
: 5' 4"; Junior
: MF

#17 Jordan Bryon
: 5' 5"; Junior
: A

#19 Carington Cantarella
: 5' 6"; Sophomore
: D

#3 Alyssa Cooke
: 5' 4"; Sophomore
: MF

#0 Kara DiClemente
: 5' 7"; Junior
: MF

#21 Ryann Doyle
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: A

#8 Abby Edmisten
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: MF

#5 Madison Foti
: 5' 6"; Freshman
: MF

#10 Paige Gacek
: 5' 6"; Sophomore
: D

#6 Tayler Hofmeister
: 5' 3"; Freshman
: A

#22 Kelly Hyman
: 5' 8"; Junior
: A