Boston College Women’s Lacrosse Primer

Last weekend, Boston College women’s lacrosse defeated USC in the Elite Eight. The Eagles will make their first Final Four appearance on Friday, when they face Navy. We know that many of you are interested in following a successful Boston College team, but don’t know a lot about the lacrosse program. So here’s a crash course in the team to get you ready for Friday.

Boston College Lacrosse in 2017

This was expected by many to be a rebuilding year for the lacrosse team. They struggled a bit in the ACC, going 3-4 overall and losing to UNC in the second round of the ACC Tournament. Early losses to Syracuse and Virginia Tech were concerning, but BC turned things around later in the year. The Eagles are 16-6 overall this season and have scored 20+ goals in their past three games... all of which were NCAA Tournament games.

Overall, the Eagles are extremely strong on offense, but have slightly inconsistent goaltending. If BC can keep up the explosive offense we’ve seen over the past couple weeks and can maintain steady defense/goaltending, they have a good shot of making it to the finals.

Navy, like BC, was definitely not expected to make it to the Final Four at the beginning of the season. The Eagle defeated the Midshipmen 20-11 earlier this year, but you cannot count Navy out. Navy’s coach, Cindy Timchal, is legendary in women’s lacrosse circles. Timchal also coached all 3 of the other Final Four head coaches during her time at Maryland.

Coaching

Boston College Head Coach Acacia Walker is in her 7th season at BC and her 5th as Head Coach. Walker is the fastest coach in program history to earn 50 wins, doing so in just 74 games. The lacrosse team has made the NCAA Tournament every year since Walker became head coach, despite having only made the Tournament once before she took over. Walker played at Maryland as a student and was a member of the U.S. Women’s Senior National Lacrosse Team from 2002-2012.

Assistant Coach Jennifer Kent is in her 9th year with the Eagles. Kent focuses on defensive coaching for the team. She played soccer, basketball, and lacrosse at Colby College. Kent is the mother of BC hockey and lacrosse star, Kenzie Kent.

Brooke Griffin joined the BC coaching staff as an assistant coach two years ago. She graduated from Maryland in 2015, where she played attack on the NCAA-winning lacrosse team. She is tied for sixth all-time in career points at Maryland with 279.

Players to Watch

Sam Apuzzo: Apuzzo is second in the NCAA with 111 points this season... and she is only a sophomore. She is the fastest player in program history to score 100 points, and she holds the program record for points in a single season. She leads the Eagles this year with 74 goals and 37 assists.

Dempsey Arsenault: Arsenault is a terrific two-way player. The sophomore midfield scored 21 points this season. On defense, she set career records in ground balls (5) and caused turnovers (4) against UConn in February. Arsenault was a major factor in BC’s first round ACC Tournament win against Notre Dame, scoring a pair of goals that helped to turn the momentum of the game in BC’s favor.

Kaileen Hart: The improvement in Hart’s play between last year and this year has been astronomical. Hart recorded only 6 points last year as a sophomore, but was in third place on the team in both points (71) and goals (47) this season. She scored hat tricks in 9 games this season, including a 4 goal game and a 5 goal game.

Kenzie Kent: Kenzie Kent joined the team at the conclusion of hockey season, and has played only 10 games. Despite that, she is in 5th place on the team with 61 points is second only to Apuzzo in assists, with 32. She has 121 career points for the team, having played only 28 games over 3 years.

Elizabeth Miller: Miller, a sophomore defender, was an All-ACC Second Team selection this season. She set career highs in ground balls and caused turnovers against Harvard in February, with 5 of each. Miller is tied for 5th most draw controls in a game in program history, with 8.

Kayla O’Connor: O’Connor, a senior, recorded a number of career highs this year. She scored a career high 6 points against Yale, a career high 5 goals against Louisville, and also set career highs in ground balls, draw controls, and caused turnovers this year. O’Connor is also in 4th place on the team with 44 goals, 24 assists, and 68 points.

Kate Weeks: Weeks is second on the Eagles in both points and assists, with 98 and 72 respectively. Weeks scored her 100th career point this season, and now has a total of 160 points. Weeks set a personal and program record this season, scoring 8 goals against UMass. This is a new program record for goals in a single game. Weeks has scored at least one goal in all but 2 games this season.

Details on Friday’s Game

Teams:

Boston College Eagles (16-6, 3-4 ACC) vs.

Navy Midshipmen (18-4, 8-1 AAC)

Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

Date: Friday, May 26 2017

Time: 7:30 PM ET

How to Watch: You can watch the game on ESPN3.

Tickets are available here.