W&L Field Hockey is the Reigning ODAC Champions. The Generals were picked No. 2 in the ODAC's preseason poll.

Field Hockey Season Preview

Generals and Hornets separated by one point in ODAC Preseason Poll

8/22/2023 4:25:00 PM

LEXINGTON, Va. - Reigning Old Dominion Athletic Conference Champions, Washington and Lee field hockey received 73 points in the annual ODAC Preseason Poll announced on Tuesday afternoon.

With three of the nine possible first place votes, the back-to-back ODAC Champs came in second behind the University of Lynchburg's 74 points and one tally ahead of Shenandoah University.

Now going into her ninth season at the helm, Head Coach Gina Wills led the Generals to a 17-3 2022 campaign. Washington and Lee was the lone squad to represent the ODAC in the NCAA Division III Tournament, the program's fourth appearance in the DIII bracket. The 2022 tournament qualification made it the third trip to the postseason in six years.

After downing Lynchburg in the ODAC Championship in overtime, the Generals were selected to host a midweek first-round match against Ohio Wesleyan University. W&L dominated the Battling Bishops, out-shooting the NCAC champions, 18-4, on the way the way to 3-0 shutout. In round two, 13th-ranked W&L traveled to Salisbury University to square off with eighth-ranked Williams College. The Ephs posted a 3-0 win to end W&L's campaign.

2023 ODAC FIELD HOCKEY COACHES' POLL

University of Lynchburg (4) 74 Pts.
Washington and Lee University (3) 73 pts.
Shenandoah University (3) 72 pts.
Roanoke College 56 pts.
Randolph-Macon College 49 pts.
Bridgewater College 40 pts.
Sweet Briar College 27 pts.
Eastern Mennonite University 25 pts.
Virginia Wesleyan University 23 pts.
Ferrum College 11 pts.

ODAC PREVIEW RELEASE

NATIONAL POLL

The Blue and White appeared in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association all throughout the 2022 season and finished the year at No. 13 in the Penn Monto sponsored poll.

The NFHCA will release the 2023 Preseason Poll next week, on August 29. During the playing season the poll, which is voted on by the NFHCA member coaches, is released on Tuesdays.

Note: The final Penn Monto/NFHCA 2022 National Coaches Poll found here.

Head Coach Gina Wills tallied 100 W&L wins in the final home game of the 2022 season

Our student-athletes are working hard this preseason and the whole team has a great energy.

The returning players made great strides over the offseason and the newcomers are connecting.

This year will feature an experienced group in the back field with a balanced attack. We are focusing on improving each day and having fun while doing it.

We can't wait for the opportunity to compete at home on September 1 on our new field.

Head Coach Gina Wills

SCHEDULE PREVIEW

The Blue and White will open up the 2023 season at home on Friday, September 1. The season-opener will feature St. Marys College (Md.) at 5 p.m. The Generals will then travel to Winchester, Va. the next day and play Johns Hopkins University on the campus of Shenandoah University at 2 p.m.

W&L will hit the road for four consecutive road games at Kenyon College, Denison, Dickinson and Mary Washington between September 9-20.

On September 30 the Generals will host Bridgewater at noon for a senior day matchup and open up the Old Dominion Athletic Conference slate.

The ODAC schedule is highlighted by an October 7 contest against Lynchburg at home and will travel to Shenandoah on Wednesday, October 11 at 7 p.m.

The Generals' fans will want to pay attention to the LYN at SU matchup on Saturday, September 30. Based on the ODAC's coaches' vote, Sept. 30 and the second week in October will prove to have important implications for conference standings and tournament seeding.

Throughout the rest of October, W&L will travel to Virginia Wesleyan, Ferrum and Eastern Mennonite to round out the ODAC road contests and will host Randolph-Macon and Roanoke.

The regular season will conclude on Saturday, October 28 at 2 p.m. at EMU.

The ODAC tournament will begin on October 31 with the quarterfinals, the semifinals will be on Thursday on November 2, The highest-remaining seed will host the ODAC Championship on Saturday, November 4.

KEY RETURNERS

Reigning ODAC Coach of the Year, Gina Wills, returns three all-ODAC honorees to the turf this fall.

Defender Jenny Lerner was voted First Team All-ODAC while Betty Boatwright, the 2022 Rookie of the year, was named a second team forward. Maddy Duggleby rounds out W&L's returning all-conference selections as a third team midfielder.

Boatwright scored ten goals and dished out four assists last year for 24 points, the sophomore is the top-returner on the offensive end. Kate Ruffin will look to have an expanded role this season after she recoded 12 points off four scores and helpers in 17 games of action.

A strong core of the starting defensive unit returns to Lexington with Lerner, Emma Gatrell, midfielder Jordan Hoover and goalkeeper Abby Long. Long is one of the top-returning keepers in the league; Long and the defense earned the second-best goals against average in the league with 1.195 GAA and posted ten combined shutouts.

On the offensive end, Boatwright scored ten goals and dished out four assists last year for 24 points, the sophomore is the top-returner on the offensive end. Kate Ruffin will look to have an expanded role this season after she recoded 12 points off four scores and helpers in 17 games of action.

Seniors Paige Mammorella and Shelby Miller registered starts and saw action in double-digit games. Allison Pitts, Amanda Tan, Sydney Baggett, Ally Hoffman and Amanda Brickner all tallied two or more points in reserve action last year. Duggleby posted two goals on just ten shots along with an assist from the midfield position during her sophomore campaign.

Wills is in her ninth year at Washington and Lee and saw the Generals to 100 career wins in the final home contest, the first round of the NCAA tournament, last year. Wills owns a 100-43-0 record in eight seasons at W&L, four ODAC Coach of the Year honors and led the Generals to three the conference championship titles in the past six years. Wills has an overall record of 221-83-0 in 16 seasons as a head coach.

Junior Maddy Duggleby started in 19 of 20 contests for W&L last year. The Fayetteville, N.Y. native is a business administration major and is minoring in art history.

The midfielder made an impact on both ends of the field and earned third team recognition in postseason conference awards for her efforts. Through two years of play, Duggleby has six goals and two assists for 14 points on her stat line with a game-winning-goal as a first-year player.

Duggleby has earned W&L Scholar-Athlete NFHCA National Academic Squad and Academic All-ODAC recognition for classroom performance. Outside of the classroom and off the field, the co-captain serves on the Fancy Dress committee and volunteers with Campus Kitchen.

Emma Gatrell is one of the most experienced upperclassmen on the roster with 49 games played and 18 starts. The defender has registered four assists and a goal from her back-line position.

Gatrell, a Charlotte, N.C. is a double major in politics and sociology and anthropology. The senior has been award with Acadmic All-ODAC and NFHCA National Academic Squad recognition each year.

The studio art minor is the community service chair for Delta Society and interned with Berlin International this summer.

The West Chester, Pa. native, Ally Hoffman has appeared in 25 contests for the Generals' midfield with three goals and two assists for eight points.

The senior accounting major has earned W&L Scholar-Athlete, Academic All-ODAC, and NFHCA National Academic Squad distinctions each year.

Hoffman is the head career fellow for the Career and Professional Development Office, the treasurer of 24, the student-athlete group, and held a finance internship this summer.

The First Team All-ODAC defender has the most starts of any returner for the Generals. Jenny Lerner has 45 stats and 48 appearances under her belt all at the defense position.

The Mount Pleasant, S.C. native recorded two defensive saves last year.

In the classroom, Lerner is a biochemistry major with academic honors from the NFHCA, ODAC, department and President's List. Last year Lerner was the secretary for the Chemistry Club and will assume the role of treasurer this year.

Lerner has experience researching optic nerve regeneration in frogs and is a Mary Louise Reid White Scholarship recipient.

Senior Abby Long returns to the cage for her second year as the starting goalkeeper. The Kansas City, Mo. native is a cognitive and behavioral science major and a star in the classroom. Long has earned W&L Scholar-Athlete status in addition to being named a NFHCA National Academic Squad, Academic All-ODAC and President's List honoree on multiple occasions.

On the field, Long registered 20 starts last season and made 44 stops on 87 shots faced for a .710 save percentage. As a junior, Long recorded four complete shutouts and helped the Generals to 10 shutouts in combined efforts with then-first-year keeper Julia McDonald.

This summer Abby spent the time away from Lexington working for the University of Kansas Health System in a cardiovascular clinic.

Washington and Lee University

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