Lacrosse Opens 2024 at #7 Notre Dame Friday

Lacrosse at #7 Notre Dame
Date	Friday, Feb. 9 \| 7:30 p.m.
Venue	Loftus Sports Center \| South Bend, Ind.
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF)
Live	Statistics \| Watch (ACCNX $)
Social Media	Instagram: @emu_Lacrosse \| Twitter: @EMU_Lacrosse

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University lacrosse team is set to open its second varsity season this week when the Eagles travel to South Bend, Ind., to take on No. 7 University of Notre Dame Friday, Feb. 9, inside the Loftus Sports Center. The opening draw between the Eagles and seventh-ranked Fighting Irish is slated for 7:30 p.m. and will be aired live on the ACCNX (subscription needed).

OPENING DRAWS
» The 2024 season is the second in program history after Eastern posted a 2-14 (1-7 MAC) record in its inaugural season (2023).
» The 40-player roster is comprised of 25 returning Eagles, including 12 starters and 22 letter winners, and the addition of 15 newcomers, including 11 "true" freshman, two underclassman transfers, and two graduate transfers. All told, 37-of-40 Eagles are either freshmen or sophomores.
» Five Eagles were selected captains ahead of the 2024 season, including sophomores Mackenzie Blackwell, Skylar Hilmer, Gina Jaffurs, and Annika Wozney, and graduate student Sydney Lawrence.
» Head Coach Sara Tisdale is back for her second year building the Eagle program and carries a career record of 107-77 in 11 years of coaching. Eastern is the third program she has started from scratch after starting programs at Augustana (Ill.) in 2012 and Central Michigan in 2016.
» Eastern was voted fourth in the 2024 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll, up from a tie for sixth in 2023.
» Last year, Mackenzie Blackwell was named the 2023 MAC Freshman of the Year while also earning a spot on the All-MAC Second Team. USA Lacrosse Magazine tabbed her as one of the top second-year players to watch in the MAC for the 2024 season.
» Mackenzie Blackwell ranks No. 1 among all returning players in the MAC for draw controls and second in the league in goals scored while Sydney Lawrence ranks first in caused turnovers, second in points, and fourth in assists among returning players in the league.
» When the Eagles and Fighting Irish meet Friday, it will mark just the second time Eastern has faced a nationally-ranked foe as Notre Dame sits No. 7 in both polls. The first instance came March 19, 2023, in a 16-3 loss at then-No. 17 Michigan.

HOW TO WATCH
Friday night's season-opening game at No. 7 Notre Dame will be streamed live on the ACCNX (subscription needed) starting just before the 7:30 p.m. opening draw. Jacob Irons will provide play-by-play for the broadcast with John French providing in-game analysis. A link for the stream, along with live stats, can be found on the lacrosse schedule page on EMUEagles.com.

SCOUTING: NOTRE DAME
    The Fighting Irish enter the season ranked among the top 10 nationally following a 2023 season in which they posted a 15-6 record, including an 8-1 mark at home, and 6-3 in the always tough ACC. Notre Dame went 12-4 in the regular season before falling in the ACC Tournament semifinals to eventual national runner-up Boston College, 9-4, and then again in the national quarterfinals, 20-6, after downing Mercer and Florida in the opening two rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
    Individually, the Irish return their top three scorers in graduate students Jackie Wolak, Kasey Choma, and Madison Ahern, who combined for 189 goals and 277 points, which equated to 58.3 percent and 60.6 percent of the team's totals, respectively. Of the nine players that scored double-digit points, six return this year. Defensively, senior Lily Callahan returns in goal were she allowed just 9.17 goals per game while stopping 149 shots and allowing 182 scores.

IN THE SERIES: EAGLES vs. FIGHTING IRISH
The game between Eastern and Note Dame will mark the first in the series. It also stands as the first time the Eagles have faced a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

IN THE RANKINGS
Ahead of the season, the ILWomen/IWLCA NCAA Division I Top 25 and the NIKE/USA Lacrosse Top 20 rankings were released with two EMU foes appearing on each list. Notre Dame, the Eagles' opening opponent, comes in ranked No. 7 in both polls, while Michigan ranks No. 12 in the ILWomen/IWLCA poll and No. 17 in the NIKE/USA Lacrosse rankings.

THE WHEELS ON THE BUS...
The game at Notre Dame will mark the first of five consecutive road games the Eagles will play to open the season. EMU was unable to win on the road last year (0-8), but will have nine chances in 2024 to secure its first.

BACK AT HOME
Of the 15 games on the regular season schedule, five will be played on campus at Scicluna Field or the Indoor Practice Facility should weather dictate. The home season opens, March 15, with a visit from Butler before Kent State comes to town, March 31, for the Eagles' home MAC opener. Eastern will play back-to-back home games in mid-April, including hosting MAC rival Central Michigan, April 14, before welcoming Xavier to town, April 17. The home finale, which will also be Senior Day, comes April 27 against Robert Morris. Eastern will have one more "home" game that will be played at King High School in Detroit, April 3, against Michigan.

GROWING OUR GAME
    During the fall, the Eagles traveled north to Traverse City where they joined with Grand Valley State and Northern Michigan for the inaugural Grow Our Game event. After a round-robin fall ball scrimmage for all three teams, the players invited youths to the field to learn about the game of lacrosse and introduce them to the equipment while also teaching passing and catching techniques.
    Later this season, the Eagles will join with Michigan for the inaugural in-season Grow Our Game event as the two Washtenaw County teams will head into Detroit to play one another at King High School, April 3, at 3 p.m. Following the game, both teams will hold a clinic aimed at sharing the sport with youth.

PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS
The Mid-American Conference announced its 2024 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll, Feb. 6, with the Eagles voted to finish fourth in the regular season standings. Kent State earned the top spot with 33 points and three first-place votes with Central Michigan (32, 3 FPV) and Robert Morris (28, 1 FPV) just behind. Eastern tallied 16 points for fourth with Akron and Youngstown State tying for fifth with 13 and Detroit Mercy rounding out the voting in seventh with 12 points. The fourth-place standing for the Eagles is up two spots from the 2023 poll in which Eastern tied for sixth.

MAC IS MAC'S TOP ROOKIE
Following the 2023 season, Mackenzie Blackwell earned a pair of honors from the league as she was named the MAC Freshman of the Year as well as Second Team All-MAC. One of the top newcomers in the league throughout the season, Blackwell started all 16 games and led the team with 41 points on 39 goals and two assists. Her 2.44 goals per game average ranked her fifth in the MAC and has her as the second-highest returning scorer in the MAC in 2024. Along with her scoring prowess, she averaged 5.19 draw controls per game, which ranked second in the league and the highest returning total ahead of the 2024 campaign.

PEOPLE KNOW HER
Mackenzie Blackwell's freshman year has made her one to watch in 2024. According to USA Lacrosse Magazine, Blackwell was tabbed one of the top second-year players to watch in the MAC this year.

MORE TOP MARKS
Mackenzie Blackwell is not the only player on the roster that ranks among the top statistical leaders returning in the MAC in 2024. Sydney Lawrence has her name on three lists, including her 1.87 caused turnovers per game ranking first last year and first among returners; her 2.73 points per game ranking eighth last year and second among returners; and her 0.73 assists sitting 10th one year ago and ranking fourth among returners. Additionally, Gina Jaffurs' 1.06 caused turnovers per game ranked 10th last year and is sixth among returning players.

HIGH MARKS
Following the 2023 season, the IWLCA announced its Academic Merit Squads, which are comprised of the three teams with the highest cumulative grade-point average in each of the NCAA divisions. With a 3.723 GPA last year, the Eagles ranked second in NCAA Division I with only Harvard ahead of Eastern with a GPA of 3.781. Jacksonville was the third team honored with a 3.720 GPA.

LOOKING BACK: 2023 SEASON
Eastern Michigan posted a 2-14 overall record in 2023 and finished tied for seventh in the MAC with a 1-7 mark. EMU opened its inaugural season with an 18-4 home loss to Niagara before dropping a close 16-11 decision at Winthrop.
    Despite the setbacks, the Eagles battled and won their first game, a 12-7 victory over visiting Delaware State, March 7, 2023. From there, EMU dropped 12 in a row, including three games by one goal, before capping the season with a 17-12 home win over Detroit Mercy for the program's first MAC victory.

CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR
    Despite the 2-14 overall record, the Eagles were close to victory in four games as they dropped three contests by one goal and one by two goals. In the non-conference season, Eastern lost at Xavier, 11-10, before falling at Butler, 14-13. Both of those teams will visit Ypsilanti this season.
    In MAC play, the Eagles dropped a 10-9 decision at home to Akron after losing at Youngstown State, 17-15, two weeks prior.

HISTORY MADE
On March 7, 2023, the Eagles welcomed Delaware State to town and recorded a 12-7 win, marking the first victory in program history. In the game, Eastern jumped out to a 6-1 lead after one and built an 8-2 lead at the break. Avery Schwab and Skylar Hilmer tallied three goals each while five others scored at least once. Giuliana Ditsky went the distance in goal, recording 10 saves while allowing seven goals.

ANOTHER ONE
On the final day of the 2023 season, the Eagles battled their way to their first MAC victory as Eastern came back from an 8-6 halftime deficit to defeat visiting Detroit Mercy, 17-12, at Scicluna Field, April 29, 2023. The Eagles took control in the third quarter with seven goals to make it 13-10 before winning the fourth quarter, 4-2, for the final tally. Individually, Abby Alderman scored five goals, Mackenzie Blackwell added four, and Skylar Hilmer added a hat trick to pace the offense. Defensively, Hannah Bargeron (six saves) and Giuliana Ditsky (five) were strong in the net to help the Eagles to victory.

NATIONALLY KNOWN
At the end of the 2023 season, the Eagles held statistics that ranked among the top 50 nationally in the NCAA. The team finished with 18.06 ground balls per game, which ranked 21st nationally, while its 8.00 caused turnovers per game ranked 50th. Individually, Sydney Lawrence ranked 26th in the NCAA with 1.87 caused turnovers per game; Mackenzie Blackwell was 37th in draw controls per game at 5.19; and Giuliana Ditsky stood 48th in saves per game at 7.93.

SPREAD IT AROUND
During its inaugural season, Eastern saw 14 different players record at least one point with 12 of those players scoring at least one goal. Additionally, eight of those players recorded double-digit point totals while five Eagles scored double-digit goals. All told, Sydney Lawrence (30 goals, 11 assists) was the lone player to hit double figures in both goals and assists for the Eagles.

BACK FOR MORE
Many familiar faces are back for the Eagles this season with 25 returners on the 40-player roster. Included in that number are 12 Eagles that started a majority of the 16 games played in 2023. Overall, 37 of the 40 Eagles on the 2024 roster are either freshmen or sophomores.

NEW TO THE CREW
The 2024 roster includes 15 newcomers to the program comprised of 11 freshmen and four transfers. The transfers include graduate students Liv Dameron and Addie Pastor, redshirt sophomore Laurelle Weisbrod, and redshirt freshman Mak Grisinger. The rookie class includes: Gracie Fugleberg, Carly Johnson, Roya Khaleeli, Karly Low, Kloey Merenuk, Ally Moore, Kendall Nagle, Maddie Porter, Leah Rings, Lexi Smalline, and Elanor Toussaint.

SEA TO SHINING SEA
The 2024 roster features student-athletes from 14 different states and two Canadian provinces, stretching from California and British Columbia to Maryland and down to Florida. While four members of the team hail from Michigan, the largest group comes from Maryland with eight players. Additionally, four players each hail from Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York.

AHOY, CAPTAINS!
Five Eagles were selected as team captains for the 2024 season with four sophomores and one graduate student comprising the group. The captains include sophomores Mackenzie Blackwell, Skylar Hilmer, Gina Jaffurs, and Annika Wozney, and graduate student Sydney Lawrence.

LEADING THE WAY
Head Coach Sara Tisdale is set for her second year guiding the Eastern program and carries a career record of 107-77 in 11 years of leading three newly founded programs, including Augustana (Ill.) in 2012 and Central Michigan in 2016 before coming to EMU. Throughout her career, Tisdale's teams have won three conference tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament three times. A two-time conference coach of the year, Tisdale's players have accumulated eight IWLCA All-Region accolades, six conference player of the year awards, and 43 all-conference honors. Her teams also have been stellar academically with 29 IWLCA All-Academic and 65 academic all-conference awards. Seven of her teams, including EMU in 2023, have been named IWLCA Academic Honor Squads as well.

YPSI WARS
Upon arriving on campus, Sara Tisdale began what became known as 'Ypsi Wars'. Ypsi Wars was created for the players to better get to know their teammates through team bonding, competing on and off the field, and having a small group to lean on. Players will remain on the same teams throughout their time at Eastern and all new players joining the program will be drafted onto teams.
    Named for iconic locations and landmarks around the Ypsilanti community, the five teams created included Team Ford Lake, Team Frog Island, Team Depot Town, Team Firehouse, and Team Water Tower. Team Ford Lake was the inaugural winner with 46 points with Team Frog Island just behind with 43.

SCORING UPDATE
The first scoring update of the 2023-24 Ypsi Wars was released at the end of the fall semester with Team Firehouse in front with 20 points. The remaining four teams are bunched together with Team Water Tower second with 11 points, Team Ford Lake third with 10, Team Frog Island fourth with nine, and Team Depot Town fifth with eight.

ON THE HORIZON
The second of five consecutive road games to open the season awaits the Eagles next week when they travel to Pittsburgh, Pa., to face Duquesne University, Thursday, Feb. 15, at 3 p.m.

FOLLOW US
For all things EMU Lacrosse, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Lacrosse on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Lacrosse on Instagram.

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Players Mentioned

Abby Alderman

Hannah Bargeron

Mackenzie Blackwell

Liv Dameron

Giuliana Ditsky

Gracie Fugleberg

Mak Grisinger

Skylar Hilmer

Gina Jaffurs

Carly Johnson

Roya Khaleeli

Sydney Lawrence

Karly Low

Kloey Merenuk

Ally Moore

Kendall Nagle

Addie Pastor

Maddy Porter

Leah Rings

Avery Schwab

Lexi Smalline

Laurelle Weisbrod

Annika Wozney

Eastern Michigan Athletics