What the Generals Are Thankful For

After spending the week at home with their family and friends for the Thanksgiving holiday, we asked the girls what they were thankful for...

Christina Benedetti '12- I am thankful for Harry Potter, Justin Bieber, and musicals (aka Glee and High School Musical).

Adele Irwin '15- I am thankful for my parents.

Emily Hardy '15- I am thankful for my family and all they've done to help me get to W&L. I'm also thankful for everyone's safe travels back to Lex!

Maddie McKaig '12- I'm thankful for having someone who cares as much about me as I do for him. And if you're thinking I'm talking about my boyfriend, you're wrong. I'm thinking of my cat, Mr. Waffles.

Taylor Zusi '14- I am thankful for my family and my dogs.

Cara Mulligan '15- I am thankful for Sarah Gray having all the seasons of Gilmore Girls and also for my new lax teammates!!

Sammy Yates '15- I am thankful for my family's good health.

Alli Shearin '12- I'm thankful for my dogs, Pup and Rus, and for all of the joy that they bring me!

Kirby Taylor '15- I am thankful for the abundance of food in my fridge and pantry (especially peanut butter and fig newtons) and a large family.

Meredith Lavin '14- I am thankful for my family and all the support they provide me.

All of the First Years (and Maisie) gathered around our own Thanksgiving style class dinner at the O'Brien house!

Leanne Stone '14- I am thankful for my two suite-mates Olive and Alice. I am thankful for their health and their extremely positive attitudes through tough recoveries from surgery.

Ashley Barnes '13- I'm thankful for my big brother and that I got to hang out with him over break.

Lauren Acker '12- I'm thankful for my family, I'm thankful for all of the seniors, and I'm thankful to be a general!

Alex Van Horn '14- I am thankful for my WONDERFUL roommate Meade.

Meade Brewster '14- I am thankful for my roommate.

Katie Lotterman '15- I'm thankful for my friends and family!

Elizabeth Bucklee '13- I am thankful for family and friends, both near and far, and for Skype, Facebook, and email that keep us in touch. I am also thankful for things like popcorn, grapes without seeds, Caesar salad, Chipotle, and the list continues...

Katie McCartin '15- I am thankful for all my family and friends and the opportunity to lax with some pretty cool people at W&L.

Jennifer Linder '12- I am thankful for the laughs my family enjoyed when my dog tried whipped cream for the first time.

Greta Witter '14- I am thankful for my brothers, all my lax pals, and my new nose.

Sarah Gray Erickson '15- I'm thankful for my family and all my new friends at school especially Adele.

The coaching staff is especially thankful for such a great team and all of their safe returns to campus following what sounds like a very thankful break! Visit the blog next week as we introduce another member of the class of 2014!

Coaches Head to IWLCA Convention

Last week Brooke and MK got up nice and early Wednesday morning to jump on a plane down to Naples, Florida for the annual IWLCA Conference and the President's Cup.

Each year the IWLCA, Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association, holds a convention for all of its members to get together and discuss important issues in the game and honor those who have worked hard to advance the game in the past year. After arriving in Florida, Wednesday and Thursday were filled with speakers such as Ryan Knapp from the NSCAA on social media and technology and Rebecca Ahlgren-Bedics from the Jeff Jansen Leadership Academy. We also spent a good deal of time discussing new rules at both our level and at the youth level, tournaments, as well as updates on all of the things the IWLCA has been working on this past year. The ballroom transformed from meeting space to dinner hall.

After a very long day of meetings on Wednesday, all the coaches got dressed up and ready for the IWLCA Honors Dinner. Our congratulations go out to all of the honorees for the 2010-11 season!

Muffy Bliss, head coach at McDaniel, MK, and Kristin Ramey, head coach at Denison, at the honors dinner.

Friday wrapped up with more discussions concerning tournaments and rules followed by a quick presentation on the great organization, Lax 4 Life. Lax 4 Life is a non profit lacrosse organization aimed at suicide prevention and awareness for young adults and adolescents. The organization started in 2009 and has raised a great deal of money to date toward their cause. Check out their Facebook page to get involved!

It wasn't all fun in the sun at the fields each day.

Once the meetings were finished it was time to change gears and get recruiting! No beach time for these Generals coaches, just plenty of sweating on the sidelines of some great tournament games all weekend.

Brooke and MK returned back to Virginia just in time to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday this week! Check back next week to hear what our Generals are thankful for.

Meet the Generals- Sophomore Alex VanHorn

Sophomore Alex VanHorn introduces herself to the masses in her own style below!

Just some classic besties- Horn, Hagey, Meade

1. Name: Alex Van Horn
2. Year: Sophomore
3. Position: Midfield
4. Major: Business Administration; minor in Mass Communication

Winners of the scavenger hunt… aka the BEST team!

5. Where do you live on campus? Kappa Delta sorority house
6. Favorite memory of last season? The last minutes of our ODAC finals game against Roanoke when it was obvious that we were going to win.. And of course the moment when the clock stopped and we were ODAC CHAMPS.
7. Goals for 2012 (personal, team, lacrosse, whatever you want to share)? My personal lacrosse goal is to SCORE GOALS! My team goal is for us to really work together and bond as a whole team. And my non-lacrosse personal goal is to really use and cherish everything available to us at W&L.

Some of us from my high school lacrosse team dressed up for Denim Day – repeat for the Gennies?!

8. What do you miss most from home? My dogs and my Mom’s food and actually having a mall and real civilization close by.
9. Favorite thing about W&L? I love the small class sizes and just knowing so many people when walking around on the Hill.
10. If you could have a super power what would it be? To be able to teleport myself anytime, anywhere.. DUH.

Thanks to Horn for the beautiful pictures and insight into her life. Also, congratulations to Lauren Acker who is being honored today as the General of the Month. Check back next week to hear about the IWLCA conference in Naples, Florida.

Generals Welcome Goalie Coach Maisie Osteen

This fall the Generals welcomed goalie coach Maisie Osteen to the team. Below she introduces herself to the Generals' Nation.

Born and raised in Charlottesville, Virginia I never dreamed where lacrosse would take me. In fact, as a kid, I didn't dream about lacrosse. I didn't know what lacrosse was until I went to an "informational meeting" in 8th grade. That was where my fate was sealed.

The first day of pratice our coach asked for a volunteer goalie for the day. Although she promised it was not forever, little did she know, it was. Once I stepped in the crease, I knew I was in the right place. In my first season as a Black Knight we went 0-12. It was rough but with a start like that things can only get better. My senior year we went 12-2 and advanced as far as possible in our division. High school lacrosse taught us all to work hard, rely on each other, and laugh... a lot! Maisie looking all pretty these days.

The recruiting process was a whirlwind and I ended up at Hofstra Univeristy in Long Island, New York. When I went on my recruiting visit I fell in love with the team, the coach, and the chance to be so close to the city. At Hofstra, I was the four-year starting goalie for the Pride. During my career we went to the CAA championship three times, winning the conferenc once, advancing to NCAAs once, and most importantly having fun, lots of fun. All the 6:00am runs, 8-hour bus rides, and late night study halls made us a closer team and a more effective unit on the field. I met some of my best friends at Hofstra and I would not change anything about my experience.

Maisie in between the pipes for the Pride.

I enjoyed life off the field, at Hofstra, as well. I majored in legal studies in business and minored in political science and history. I took a bunch of art classes and every opportunity to get in to the city to visit museums, go to street fairs, and experience different cultural events.

The summer after my sophomore year I played in a tournament with a few players from the Welsh National Lacrosse Team. I expressed excitement about the team to them because my grandfather was from Wales. During the tournament, I spoke to the coach and the next month I was flown over to the United Kingdom for a try-out. After a long exhausting weekend, I made the team, and started flying to Great Britain once a month for squad weekends. The team was filled with amazing and ccomplished women who ranged in age, experience, and backgrounds. We had doctors, police officers, and there were a few other students as well.

Maisie in the cage again, this time for the Welsh National Team.

After I graduated I moved to England to be closer to the team in the year leading up to the World Cup. I taught sports at the Royal School for Girls in Haslemere, Surrey, UK. At the school I was the head coach for five lacrosse teams with players ranging in age from 11-18. If for any reason I had started to think of lacrosse as a job, this position reminded me exactly why I loved the sport. I had so much fun working and learning with the girls. Also, being in the UK allowed me to substantiate my relationships with my Welsh teammates. We played in a number of tournaments, attended numerous events, and really got to know each other. In June 2009, the World Cup was in Prague, Czech Republic. It was a fantastic experience and although we did not do quite as well as we had hoped, ending in 6th place, we performed very well and confirmed our international position as a strong team.

After I returned from the UK I worked in Charlottesville for two years at both the Legal Aid & Justice Center and a small local defense firm. These experiences, along with some of my previous educational experiences, solidified my desire to go to law school and that, my friends, is how I ended up at Washington and Lee. I am particularly interested in pursuing a career in human rights and public interest law. I did a substantial amount of my undergraduate work in human trafficking prevention and research and, although, I am interested in continuing that research, I realize there is a multitude of valuable work to be done and I am excited to learn more about varying legal opportunities!

I owe a lot to lacrosse. It has afforded me amazing opportunities to travel, access to a great education, and millions of amazing memories playing the sport I love. The most important and rewarding part of my lacrosse career, however, has been the people I have met. My teammates, coaches, fans, and opposiong players are why this journey has been so special. Many of my best friends now are people I once played beside. We know each other so well because we have seen each other at our best and our worst and we have learned the difference.

I am excited to get to know the Washington & Lee lacrosse team better and I look forward to an amazing upcoming season. Go Generals!

Now that you know the coaching staff, check back next week to meet one of our sophomores who wasn't properly introduced on the blog last year!

MK Heads Out For Some West Coast Lax

While the rest of the Generals were busy raking leaves and painting rooms for our Fall Clean-Up Fundraiser, I jumped on a plane bound for Seattle and some West Coast lax!
The clinic venue on a beautiful fall Seattle day!

While it was definitely my fastest trip to the West Coast and back, (I was in Seattle for only 27 hours) it proved to be a great day to help spread the game of lacrosse. Through the club team I also coach during the off season, XTEAM, I was sent out to coach a WomensLax.com clinic with some of the coaches from USC. I worked with Devon Wills, USC defensive coordinator and US National team goalie, Hilary Bowen, USC offensive coordinator and four time national champion with Northwestern, Regan Bosch, director of lacrosse operations at USC and Duke '08 graduate, and Catherine Rodriguez, Syracuse class of 2011 and local Seattle laxer. We had more than 50 laxers come out for a great day filled with stickwork, shooting instruction, small games, and scrimmages.

After the clinic the coaching staff had a little time to explore Seattle before boarding our respective planes back home. Below are some pictures from our little trip eating our way through Pikes Place Market!

Unfortunately no on ordered anything, so we didn't see any fish throwing.

We stopped to sample cheese curds and the famous Mac and Cheese at Beecher's Handmade Cheese!

We even added our own little bits to the famous gum wall!

Seattle is a great place where lacrosse is definitely growing and getting better all the time. The next time I make a trip out I only hope I can stay a little bit longer!

Next week's blog will be filled with an introduction, but you'll have to check back to find out who we're introducing!