By Jim Fenton
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University women's lacrosse team ended the 2023 regular season on a roll.
The Bears put together a five-game winning streak to finish in second place in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.
With all but five players returning for the 2024 season, BSU is looking to build on that late-season momentum. The second-seeded Bears lost in the conference tournament semifinal round to Framingham State University, 15-8.
"We fell short of our team goal, but we put ourselves in the best position to be successful," said coach Erica Adams, who is 74-51 since taking the program over in 2016. "We had a pretty young team, so I think the lights were just a little bit too bright for us (in the tourney).
"But it was definitely a great learning opportunity for those players who are now upperclassmen, which is very helpful."
The Bears open the season on Wednesday at 4 p.m., hosting Wheaton College at Peter Mazzaferro Field.
BSU went 5-2 in the conference, finishing two games behind champion Westfield State University, and 10-8 overall. The Bears are picked to finish third in the MASCAC preseason coaches poll behind Westfield State and Framingham State.
That five-game winning streak came after BSU opened the MASCAC schedule with two losses, and Adams saw her team improve with each passing week.
"Their confidence and beliefs started to grow throughout the season," said Adams. "I think that's one of those things you can't measure from a statistical standpoint. They were able to build on their skill set and build their mental game and team chemistry with each other."
The Bears lost midfielder Delaney Langton, who had 36 goals and 26 assists and made the All-MASCAC first team, to graduation, but two other all-conference second team players are back.
Sophomore attacker Camryn Gonsalves (East Bridgewater, Mass.) had 30 goals and 15 assists in her freshman season while sophomore midfielder Erin McIntyre (Tewksbury, Mass.) had 27 goals and six assists.
"She's really been putting in the work," said Adams of Gonsalves. "She had a good breakout season last year. Erin is super quick and an agile midfielder."
Goalkeeper Olivia Kerrigan graduated after starting 13 of the 18 games. Senior Laura Giovaniello (Walpole, Mass.) will start after appearing in 11 games and going 3-2 in five starts with the backup being junior Brooke La Torra (Oak Park, Calif.), who appeared in three games off the bench.
"We've got some depth there," said Adams. "We should be pretty secure there with the experience we have."
There are veterans on defense, including senior Bridget Lane (Newburyport, Mass.) plus juniors Chloe Bowman (Falmouth, Mass.), Mya Dupuy (Middleboro, Mass.) and Katie Murphy (Kingston, Mass.).
"They've been in our system a long time and will be able to give us a lot of good minutes on defense," said Adams. "We are pretty much returning everybody on defense."
Senior captain Katherine Wrona (Belchertown, Mass.) will be playing midfield and defense while the other midfielders include Hannah Bowlby (Dalton, Mass.), Melanie McClay (Plymouth, Mass.), McIntyre and Meredith Sylvia (Dartmouth, Mass.), who had 21 goals a year ago.
"We graduated three midfielders who were significant contributors," said Adams. "With their departures, it opens up a great opportunity for a couple of our younger kids.
"I think we're poised to be OK, but when you lose three really good midfielders to graduation, it's one of those things you have to make it work. We'll be alright."
Gonsalves leads the attack position, which includes senior Savannah Herrington (Kinnelon, N.J.), Katy Shaw (Centerville, Mass.), Katie Lamothe (Dartmouth, Mass.), who had 16 assists,and Ashley Silva (Rowley, Mass.).
Herrington had 25 goals and five assists last season and will be counted on to be a key to the offense.
"She's been a starter since freshman year," said Adams. "She's a very creative, quick attacker who can finish in tight spaces."
Adams sees her team as being balanced heading into the 17-game schedule.
"I'm super happy with where our offense is at," she said. "It's just connecting all the pieces. We want to put the offense, midfield and defense with goalie all on one string, make a good connection and be successful.
"I feel like we're pretty balanced across the board. Laura's ready to step into that goalkeeper role and has put in a lot of great work in her three-plus years here. She has the game experience.
"Overall, the group has been together for a long time and with 17 returners, you all have a really good understanding of how each other plays, where they're going to be on the field. We've got a couple of new additions who will challenge us and give us good minutes as we get into the thick of the season."
After hosting Wheaton, the Bears travel to Connecticut to play Coast Guard on Feb. 23rd and will be in Maine on March 1 to take on the University of New England.
BSU will then be in San Juan, Puerto Rico for six days, playing Chatham University of Pittsburgh on March 7 and the Rochester Institute of Technology on March 9 during spring break.
The last time the Bears traveled to Puerto Rico was 2020 where they split two games, then learned the rest of the season was being canceled due to the COVID pandemic.
"It was kind of crazy," said Adams. "I had to break the news to the seniors while we were in paradise and we had to get home."
This year, BSU will get practice time and play two teams from outside of New England.
"Those will be two really good games for us," said Adams. "That'll be a big challenge for us. We're looking forward to it.
"The spring trip, we refer to it as a business trip. I really think it's an underrated aspect of building that camaraderie and team bonding. You get to be in a place without a lot of distractions as a unit at the hotel, on buses, doing activities. It's a great aspect of the Division 3 experience.
"That's where they make their memories. We want to be successful on the field, of course, but we get that experience and will be stronger when we come back. It's definitely an awesome opportunity the kids get to experience."