Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 2/6/15
From Press Release
Six-time defending champion Massachusetts has been picked atop the 2015 Atlantic 10 Conference Women’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll announced by the A-10 on Thursday.
UMass received eight of the nine first-place votes and a total of 80 points to take the top spot. Richmond got the other first-place nod and finished with 70 points to place second in the poll.
Duquesne finished third with 63 points, while La Salle (54 pts.) and George Washington (42 pts.) finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
UMass is coming off a 2014 campaign in which it went 18-2 overall and earned its fourth straight bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Minutewomen’s 28 consecutive regular-season league wins is the fourth longest such streak in NCAA history. Overall, UMass has won 40 consecutive games (including A-10 Championship games) against league teams.
Junior Erika Eipp is back in the mix for UMass after posting 28 goals and dishing out 29 assists for 57 points which was third highest on the team a year ago. Goalkeeper Rachel Vallarelli is back in the cage for UMass following a junior season in which she was named Second Team All A-10. Vallarelli started all 20 games last season, making 88 saves and posting a 6.26 goals against average.
The Spiders advanced to the A-10 Championship game last season and posted its most wins since 2007 with 11. First-Team All-Atlantic 10 attack Emily Doyle is back for head coach Allison Kwolek coming off a junior campaign where she scored 32 goals and recorded 33 assists.
A-10 newcomer Davidson finished sixth in the poll, while Saint Joseph’s, George Mason and St. Bonaventure rounded out the rankings.
2015 A-10 Women’s Lacrosse Poll
Team (First-Place Votes) Pts.
1. Massachusetts (8) – 80
2. Richmond (1) – 70
3. Duquesne – 63
4. La Salle – 54
5. George Washington – 42
6. Davidson – 35
7. Saint Joseph’s – 29
8. George Mason – 23
9. St. Bonaventure – 9
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