George Washington University Athletics
Colonials Kick Off 2005 Campaign Versus William & Mary
2/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
Feb. 28, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC - The George Washington women's lacrosse team opens the 2005 season when they host Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) foe William & Mary on Tuesday, March 1 at the Mount Vernon Athletic Complex.
The 2005 campaign represents the first year of the Chrissy Lombard era. Lombard took over as head coach after serving as an assistant under former GW mentor Jen Morris for three years.
The Colonials are coming off their best season since the program's inception in 2002. GW was 8-9 overall and just missed a bid to the Atlantic 10 Championship, finishing fifth in the conference standings. The Colonials were also picked to tie for the fifth place this season with St. Bonaventure in a preseason poll of the league's coaches.
GW has nine seniors on its roster that have been with the program since its first season in 2002. One of those seniors, captain Erin Berry, is the only Colonial to start all 48 games in program history and will anchor the defense. She owns the GW career records for ground balls (132) and caused turnovers (99).
Sophomore Laura Hostetler is the Colonials' top returning scorer. Hostetler set GW single-season records for goals (45), assists (17) and points (62) on her way to winning the Atlantic 10's Rookie of the Year Award. Senior captain Jenny Heisler also returns. She was second on the squad with 37 points (20g, 17a).
Tuesday's game also marks the season opener for William & Mary. The Tribe finished 10-8 last season and advanced to the final of the CAA Tournament. William & Mary is receiving votes in this week's Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches' Association (IWLCA) preseason poll and the Tribe are ranked 14th in the initial Inside Lacrosse Magazine poll.
Morgan Watkins is the team's top returning scorer (58 points) and was named a second-team preseason All-American by Inside Lacrosse.
The Colonials lost their only previous pairing with the Tribe, 13-9, in 2004.
