Feb. 12, 2015
SAN DIEGO - Kylee White has been looking forward to this season ever since being named the first head coach of San Diego State women's lacrosse in 2010.
Equipped with her first four-year senior class, along with an experienced group of juniors and sophomores, White leads the Aztecs into the 2015 season with high expectations. San Diego State is coming off its first-ever postseason appearance in 2014, and returns a stellar group of 13 players who started at least five games last season.
"This is the group that is going to set a new standard for Aztec lacrosse," White said. "I think we have a very experienced defensive group and a strong senior presence. It's a little bittersweet. I don't want them to leave since they are our first (four-year) class, but I'm excited to have the maturity, leadership and experience.
"I expect our best season yet."
SDSU has been picked to finish sixth in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Coaches Poll for the second-consecutive season, one year after fulfilling its sixth-place prediction and making an MPSF quarterfinals appearance against Colorado.
The Aztecs set several new program records along the way, including most conference victories (4), most road victories (4) and most conference player of the week honors (6), while playing four teams that made the NCAA Tournament and six teams who at least received votes in either the IWLCA Coaches Poll or the Brine Women's Media Poll.
But after suffering several close losses in 2014, including an overtime loss to Colorado in the MPSF Championships, White believes the Aztecs are ready to take the next step.
"We've learned a lot from those experiences, having three or four really close games," White said. "Having had those experiences last year will give us confidence when we face those situations again."
Having an improved, veteran group of talent will help as well. San Diego State returns each of its team captains and all-MPSF performers from a year ago in senior midfielder Christina Ricciardulli, senior attack Michaela Jarvis and senior defender Lauren Paul, and the trio will have plenty of help. Senior attack Lauren Maack, senior midfielder Grace Korandovich, junior attack Andrea Killebrew, junior defender Anna Cholewczynski and sophomore midfielder Vickie Porter all are experienced returners who White believes will make a big impact.
In addition, sophomore goalkeeper Katrina Reeves is expected to start in the net for the second-consecutive season after leading the Spanish National Team to a second-place finish and earning team MVP honors in the Budapest New Year's Cup in January.
And it doesn't end there. The additions of sophomore transfer midfielder Ijeoma Ikpe from Old Dominion, along with freshman attack Katherine Smith and freshman midfielder Elizabeth Rourke give the Aztecs a considerably deeper bench than previous seasons.
"There's going to be a lot of combinations of players on the field this year," White said. "We definitely have more depth than we've ever had."
San Diego State continues to prepare for its 2015 season with a home exhibition contest against Western Ontario on Sunday, Feb. 15, beginning at noon PT, at Aztec Lacrosse Field. The Aztecs officially begin their season on the road against No. 4 Florida on Feb. 20, which will be one of four contests they'll play this season against teams that made the 2014 NCAA Tournament.
SDSU will play host to seven regular-season home games this season, including its home opener against Liberty on March 13, a matchup against Big South Conference foe Winthrop (March 18), a showdown with MPSF defending champion No. 19 Denver (April 10) and an MPSF tournament rematch against Colorado (April 12).
Despite having some stiff competition in its path, it's shaping up to be the most memorable lacrosse season yet on The Mesa.
"It's just a really exciting year," White said. "We're going after that MPSF championship."