WLAX Prepping for Breakout 2020 Season

Senior goalie Jules Horning enters year four as her team's starter in net

Photo by: Maggie Bean

2/3/2020 3:25:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

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The Golden Eagles will begin their 2020 season on Sunday, Feb. 9 at Notre Dame

By: Communications

MILWAUKEE - The Marquette University women's lacrosse program is heading into its eighth season in existence in 2020. Last season, the Golden Eagles (9-9, 3-2 BIG EAST) finished second in the conference standings and for the first time in program history, hosted a BIG EAST tournament game at Valley Fields.

Head Coach Meredith Black, who's been at the helm of the MU women's lacrosse program since its origin in 2012, will be tasked with replacing six starters, including four of the team's top five scorers from last season.

"We're inexperienced as a group, but I love the energy, the passion and commitment that this team brings every day," Black said. "They've always wanted it, but this team wants it more than any team I've ever coached. They're all-in."

Departed seniors Grace Gabriel, Cate Soccodato, Charlotte McGuire and Lindsey Willcocks combined to score 138 goals and dish out 65 assists in 2019.

MU's coaching staff knows that no one player will be able to replace the production of Gabriel, a three-time All-BIG EAST honoree and a two-time BIG EAST Co-Midfielder of the Year.

"What's exciting about every season is that we as a coaching staff get to talk through how we can play to the girls' strengths and set them up to be successful when they're on the field," Associate head coach Caitlin Fifield said. "We lost some offensive firepower from last season, but we have a few girls who we know have a chance to make a big jump this season."

Attack (10)
2           Mary Dooley (Jr.)
4           Caroline Steller (Jr.)
6           Bridget Danko (Sr.)
9           Megan Menzuber (Sr.)
14           Mary Schumar (Fr.)
21           Shea Garcia (So.)
28           Lindsey Hill (RSo.)
30           Elizabeth Escudero (Fr.)
32           Lauren Shaw (So.)
44           Claire Hamilton (Jr.)

MU's top returning scorer from the 2019 season is senior captain Megan Menzuber. The attacker from Chanhassen, Minn., scored 32 goals (third on the team) and dished out 12 assists for a total of 44 points. Menzuber has a chance to have a huge senior season and the staff plans on utilizing her in a number of ways.

Menzuber, Megan — Megan Menzuber is the team's leading returning scorer. She'll have a chance to set multiple school records in 2020.

"Zubes is one of a kind," Black said. "She's passionate and genuine in everything that she does. She's truly one of the best leaders I've ever been around. If we're having success as a team, something she does is always going to be a part of it."

Another player whose success will be crucial to a great season will be sophomore attacker Shea Garcia, who returns after becoming the first Golden Eagle women's lacrosse player to be named BIG EAST Freshman of the Year.

"Shea is growing a lot as a leader and as a player," Fifield said. "She's such a dynamic player and can make winning plays for our team. I'm excited to coach her and help her take the next step this season."

Junior Caroline Steller will be another key to MU's offensive attack this spring. She's scored 17 goals in her first two years and has a chance to become one of the team's top goal scorers in 2020.

"[Caroline] Steller has really worked on building her connections with her teammates and they just love to play with her," Fifield said. "She's gotten a good amount of playing time in her first two years here and that experience should help her make an even bigger impact in year three."

Midfield (12)
3           Leigh Steiner (Fr.)
  5           Aubrey McLaren (Fr.)
8           Hannah Greving (Fr.)
10           Emma Soccodato (Fr.)
12           Caroline Peterson (Jr.)
13           Abbey Lippold (So.)
15           Logan Dobratz (Gr.)
16           Madison Kane (Jr.)
20           C.J. Froemming (Fr.)
23           Emily Becker (Fr.)
25           Caroline Blandford (So.)
35           Emily Cooper (Jr.)
37           Lydia Foust (So.)

The midfielder with the most experience coming back from last season is junior Madison Kane, who started in 17 of the team's 18 games in 2019.

A Preseason All-BIG EAST Team selection, Kane finished fourth on the team in assists (9) last year while also chipping in 14 goals. Her role is expected to increase this year with the loss of standout midfielders Grace Gabriel and Lindsey Willcocks.

Kane, Madison — Madison Kane will see her role increase as a junior this spring.

"Madison will be the leader in our midfield unit," Black said. "She's our most experienced player coming back at the position and she's really grown in her confidence at both ends of the field."

Another midfielder who is going to see her minutes and role expand is Caroline Peterson, a junior from Phoenix, Md. Peterson played in every game last year as one of the first players off the bench, scoring four goals and logging two assists.

"She [Peterson] logged a lot of minutes in the past couple years," Fifield said. "She's always been good offensively, but she's really focused on improving defensively as well to turn herself into a great two-way player. She's confident, fast and dynamic with the ball in her stick."

Defense (10)
1           Maria Mulvihill (So.)
7           Brynn Sunderland (Jr.)
11           Kaitlyn Viviano (Gr.)
17           Kate Pearson (Fr.)
18           Colleen Graham (Fr.)
19           Mary Blee (Fr.)
24           Nia Polk (So.)
26           Jocelyn Miller (Jr.)
33           Erin Dowdle (Sr.)
34           Ellie Henry (So.)
36           Rebecca Cappaert (So.)

Assistant coach Emilia Ward, who specializes in coaching the defenders and goalies, is extremely excited about the overall talent she has to work with this season.

MU returns two terrific defenders in junior Jocelyn Miller and senior Erin Dowdle. Both started all 18 games last year and earned first and second team all-conference honors, respectively. Miller, who is a Preseason All-BIG EAST Team selection, has started in all 36 games of her collegiate career. Dowdle has appeared in 27 games during her first three years as a Golden Eagle.

Miller, Jocelyn — An All-BIG EAST selection, Jocelyn Miller will look to lead MU's defense in 2020.

"The two of them definitely lead us in the aggressiveness category," Ward said. "They're fast and confident and have the ability to cause a lot of turnovers."

Another one of the anchors to the MU defense is graduate student and team captain Kaitlyn Viviano. The West Islip, N.Y., native missed all of last season because of injury but returned in 2020 for one final season in Blue & Gold.

"Having [Kate] Viviano back is huge for our defense," Ward said. "Since she was injured last year, she really studied the game and improved her lacrosse IQ and became another coach on the sideline. She's been a huge calming influence, especially to our underclassmen."

With the loss of key starters Laine Dolan and Anna Gallagher from 2019, MU will depend on several young players to fill the holes. Sophomore Ellie Henry played four games as a freshman and has a great shot to work her way into the starting lineup this season.

Draws (3)
19        Mary Blee (Fr.)
34        Ellie Henry (So.)
35          Emily Cooper (Jr.)

Emily Cooper, a junior out of Columbia, Md., will be one of MU's primary draw takers in 2020. She had 20 draw controls last season as a sophomore and will see her role increase there with the departures of Grace Gabriel (119 DC's) and Lindsey Willcocks (45 DC's). Ellie Henry and Mary Blee are also expected to see time in the circle this season.

"We're going to win games by winning a lot of draw controls and having that transition into a very balanced attack," Black said. "It's going to have to be everyone, both attackers and midfield, that can be a threat to score."

Goalie (4)
27           Sophia Leva (Jr.)
31           Jules Horning (Sr.)
38           Bella Dervin (Fr.)
40           Delaney Friel (So.)

The winningest goalie in program history, senior Jules Horning will be entering her fourth season as a starter in 2020. Her 376 saves are second-most all-time at MU behind Sarah Priem (426). Having her back for another season is going to be key to the defensive efforts of a young team.

Horning, Jules — Jules Horning is just 53 saves away from becoming MU's all-time saves leader.

"What makes Jules [Horning] so special is she's been through the highs and lows of multiple seasons at the collegiate level and she knows what it takes to play at a high level," Ward said. "She's seen every type of attack that teams could throw at her and she's a tremendous vocal leader as well. Jules is everything you can ask for in a goalie."

Her backup is junior Sophia Leva, a native of Macedon, N.Y. Despite not being the everyday starter, Leva has gotten high praise from her teammates and coaching staff. She played in seven games as a freshman and 14 games as a sophomore, providing quality depth in the crease.

"Bringing in Sophia gives us a great wrinkle to throw at teams," Ward said. "Her and Jules were extremely competitive in the fall and they understand what each of their strengths and weaknesses are. We're definitely going to need both of them this season and have full confidence in both players."

Providing depth at the position are underclassmen Delaney Friel and Bella Dervin.

UP NEXT:
The Golden Eagles begin the regular season on Sunday, Feb. 9 at Notre Dame at 11 a.m. Central time. They have a 12 game non-conference slate this season before getting into BIG EAST play on March 28 against Old Dominion.

Coach Black and company are looking to build confidence so they can play their best lacrosse of the season in conference play.

"We just want to see improvement," Black said. "We know we're going to make mistakes early on, but the key is fixing those mistakes and making sure we improve on the things we're doing wrong. By the time we get to BIG EAST play, every single player needs to know how important her role is to the success of the team, and we'll find out those roles in these early games."

Keep up with the Marquette women's lacrosse program all season long through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteWLax) and Instagram (@MarquetteWLax) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteWLax).