by Libby Bowman
The Roanoke women’s lacrosse team worked tirelessly throughout their off season and preseason to prepare for their new spring season. Ending the 2022 season with a 16-5 record and a spot in the NCAA tournament, this team had high standards for themselves. Roanoke began their season with a new member of their coach staff, Erica Brown. Brown has been a lacrosse coach for many years, but previously was the head coach at Tiffin University. She was the head coach there for ten seasons until she joined the Roanoke College community. Brown comes in with a simple, yet high, expectation for this lacrosse team, “to be better than we started”. The team will use this expectation to accomplish their goal of developing as individuals and as a team.
As the team begins their season, their process of getting better and developing has just begun. The team’s motto this year is, “buy in”. Brown explains this motto, “Everything is a process, playing on a team, learning something new, facing adversity, winning a game. If you aren’t willing to go all in, you won’t get the most out of the experience. ‘Buy In’ means you are fully committed to the process.” This motto shined through in their first game of the 2023 season.
This past Saturday, the team traveled to Ohio to take on the Denison University, Big Red. Denison University was ranked #19 in the NCAA going into the matchup with Roanoke, but this did not intimidate the Maroons. They took down the Big Red 14-4, with an unbreakable defense and gritty offense. Brown stated “the team was never comfortable, we played hard from the first whistle to the last. We knew we were playing against a great team and never played like we were winning.” Roanoke’s first game showed exactly why they are one of the top teams in the nation. Following this game, they claimed the #18 spot in the nation via USA Lacrosse Magazine.
This is only the beginning for this team — they will continue to grow through their hard work this season. Their home opener is Sunday, February 26 at noon against a competitive team, the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Seahawks.
