February 5, 2010

Lacrosse Magazine has put the finishing touches on its 2010 college preview issue, which mailed US Lacrosse members the first week of February. LM canvassed rival coaches to give us their anonymous take on the top 10 preseason ranked teams for Division I men's and women's lacrosse.

WD1: 10 Princeton | 9 UND | 8 UVA | 7 SU | 6 Georgetown | 5 Duke | 4 Penn | 3 UNC | 2 UMD | 1 Northwestern

Scouting Report: No. 2 Maryland (Women)

National Midfielder of the Year Caitlyn McFadden leads No. 2 Maryland, which returns nearly its entire team intact after last year's run to the final four.

HEAD COACH: Cathy Reese
CONFERENCE: ACC
2009 RECORDS: 21-1, 5-0
2010 SCHEDULE: Click Here

WHO'S BACK

M Caitlyn McFadden (Sr.)
National Midfielder of the Year and U.S. team member got 54g, 32a and scored at least one goal in every game of Maryland’s 21-game winning streak. What will LM’s Preseason Player of the Year do for an encore? Reese: “She’s just an all-around excellent midfielder.”
A Karri Ellen Johnson (So.)
Led Terps with 87 points and 71 draw controls. Named ACC Rookie of the Year and first-team All-America. Her 74 goals were third-best in school history. Reese: “For us, she’s been an excellent finisher. She’s also great at controlling the draws.”
A Sarah Mollison (Jr.)
Helped Terps with 44 goals and 39 assists. Played in World Cup for Australia. All-ACC pick last year. Reese: “She is a good leader on the field…works very hard, has good stick skills and good field sense.”
M Laura Merrifield (Jr.)
Team England standout has quietly put up great numbers -- yes, Maryland is so stacked that 46 goals become an afterthought -- and does significant damage in transition.
D Brittany Poist (Jr.)
Terps top returning defender led the team with 40 ground balls and ranked third with 20 caused turnovers in 2009.

WHO'S NOT

Maryland retruns its top 10 scorers. You have to go as far down the line as the Terps 11th-leading scorer, Alex Mavris (3g, 1a) to find a player who does not return from their stellar 2009 team. It's a scary thing for ACC foes -- the deepest, best-balanced team in the nation. What's scarier, McFadden and Brittany Jones are the only significant hits Maryland will take after this year's graduation.

WHO'S NEW

M Katie Schwarzmann
As if it did not boast enough talent, Maryland added one of the top players from its own backyard in this Century High School standout, who was a three-time All-American and helped put Carroll County back on the map.

X FACTOR

Goalkeeper Brittany Dipper is a third-year starter who allowed 9.17 goals per game and registered a .418 save percentage last year. If her ball-stopping abilities continue to improve, given the firepower in front of her, these Terps could be impenetrable.

RIVAL COACHES' TAKES

"Loss in last year’s semis has motivated them to refocus. Exceeded expectations last year and have everybody back."

"Clearly, they didn’t have a lot of weaknesses on the field last year. Without losing anybody and barring injuries to key people, you would expect them to be in the hunt this year. I think the most valuable person on that team is Karri Ellen Johnson. She is such a smart off-ball player, and she’s so dangerous."

"They’re loaded with everyone coming back and then some. The first thing you think of is speed. If you don’t control the pace of the game, it’s going to be a long day for you."

"Very fast and athletic. Great team whose players are athletic. Play loose and aggressive."

"They got overwhelmed in their final four appearance, but they’re so athletic and they have so much speed and great skill, and they have depth. I think they’re the whole package. I think when you look on paper at teams, I think they give Northwestern a run for their money for the preseason No. 1 ranking."