CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard women's lacrosse is set to play its Ivy League opener in a matchup against No. 24 Brown this weekend (Mar. 2). The game will start at 1:00 p.m. at Jordan Field and will be broadcast on ESPN+. The Crimson will host its annual Team Impact game on Saturday as part of an initiative to raise awareness for the program.
Devon Wills, The Carole Kleinfelder Head Coach for Harvard Women's Lacrosse, announced two new team members in the preseason as 5-year-old Tilly and 9-year-old Josephine will join the program through Team IMPACT.
Tilly and her sister Josephine were officially introduced at a signing day press conference in January in the Dillon Lounge on campus. They participate in many team activities such as games, practices, and other important team events.
WHAT TO KNOW
LAST TIME OUT
- Callie Hem, Caroline Mullahy and Riley Campbell combined for 25 points on the day.
- Caroline Mullahy broke a 43-year program record after adding ten assists and shattering the previous record of 7 in a single game.
- Callie Hem broke her previous career high of seven goals in a game with eight. She leads the country in goals per game with 6.67.
- The Crimson were successful on 19-of-19 clear attempts.
- Harvard outscored its opponents 60-17 through three games.
THE MATCHUP
- This will be the 48th meeting for Harvard and Brown. The Crimson fell last season the the Bears, but lead in the all-time series 34-13.
- Though they were defeated in their meeting last season, Riley Campbell, Kate Gilliam, Callie Hem and Charlotte Hodgson scored a combined six goals in the game.
- The Bears are also 3-0 in three games this season.
- Coming away with two victories on the road to open the season against UMass and UAlbany, the Bears were able to take down Sacred Heart last weekend in their home opener, 15-6.
- Mia Mascone leads the team with 17 points in three games this season. Mascone scored five times in the first game of the season against UMass. She also leads the team in caused turnovers with eight.
- Annie Burton leads in ground ball collections this season with nine.
- Claire Mahoney has led Brown in the cage after starting all three games and making 17 stops to date this season.
- This will be the first time this season the Crimson has played a ranked opponent.
QUICK HITTERS
- Harvard returns five of the six players that earned All-Ivy League honors last season, including leading scorer Callie Hem (43 goals, 16 assists), who earned First-Team All-Ivy accolades. Riley Campbell (36 goals, 13 assists) earned Second-Team All-Ivy honors, with Maddie Barkate (18 goals, nine assists), Charlotte Hodgson (24 goals, 24 ground balls) and Grace Taylor (25 ground balls, nine caused turnovers) earning All-Ivy Honorable Mention recognition.
- Harvard women's lacrosse was named a 2023 IWLCA Academic Honor Squad and had 14 individuals earn IWLCA Academic Honor Roll distinction for the 2022-23 academic year, which was the most among Ivy schools.
- The Crimson returns nine of its top-10 points leaders from last season.
- Harvard finished with 182 goals scored last year, which was good for the most since the 2018 season.
- Last season, the Crimson clinched a bid into Ivy postseason play by defeating Columbia, 19-4. Harvard met the top-seeded Penn in the Ivy League Tournament first round.
- Harvard had the third-most caused turnovers in the Ivy League last season, sitting just behind Yale and Penn.
- Seven first-years have been added to the roster for the 2024 season, including Rebecca Arpano, Callie Batchelder, Chloe Bednar, Hattie Manser, Grace Mullahy, Stella Shea, and Natasha Tribolet.
- Kenzie Kent rejoined the coaching staff in 2023-24 as an assistant coach. Kent returns to Cambridge after a two-year stint at Syracuse where she served in the same role. A former All-American, Kent began her coaching career at Harvard in 2019 after an extremely successful collegiate career at Boston College.
- Incoming midfielder Stella Shea was named to the Inside Lacrosse Power 100 Top 100 Freshmen heading into the season.
- Charlotte Hodgson also received preseason honors after being named as one of USA Lacrosse Magazine's Top Sophomores to Watch.
NOTES
IVY PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
- Callie Hem took home Ivy Player of the Week honors after scoring 13 goals in two games last weekend. The senior leads the country in goals per game.
WILLS INDUCTED INTO NATIONAL LACROSSE HALL OF FAME
- Devon Wills was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in January after a remarkable collegiate and professional career.
- An Ivy League athlete, Wills studied and played at Dartmouth where she left her mark in the cage. Wills was named to the All-Ivy team in all four years as a member of the Big Green and was also a three-time IWLCA All-America Second-Team honoree.
- Professionally, Wills became the first female player to be drafted to the Major Lacrosse League after being selected by the Long Island Lizards. Wills was also selected by the Long Island Sound with the second overall pick in the inaugural United Women's Lacrosse League Draft. Wills led her club to the first-ever UWLX championship after posting an 8.29 GAA and a 6-1 record. Wills made eight saves in the championship game in a 13-8 victory where she was named MVP.
HARVARD PICKED FOURTH IN IVY PRESEASON POLL
- Harvard was picked to finish fourth in the 2024 Ivy League Women's Lacrosse Preseason Poll, the league announced earlier this week.
IVY LEAGUE WOMEN'S LACROSSE PRESEASON POLL
- 1. Penn | 128 Points
- 2. Princeton | 102 Points
- 3. Yale | 96 Points
- 4. HARVARD | 95 Points
- 5. Cornell | 55 Points
- 6. Dartmouth | 48 Points
- 7. Brown | 45 Points
- 8. Columbia | 17 Points
APPROACHING MILESTONES
- Junior Caroline Mullahy is currently sitting at 97 career points as she looks to become the second player on the roster with 100 career points.
- Not far behind is senior Riley Campbell, who will also look to break the 100-point mark this season as she is only eight points away.
ONE OF THE NATION'S BEST ON THE DRAW
- Shattering her career best of 16 in 2022, Maddie Barkate recorded 102 draw controls last season which was good for 13th in the nation.
- One of only two athletes in the top 15 nationally with under 15 games played, Barkate averaged 6.80 draw controls per game.
CAMPBELL AND KOFMAN ELECTED CAPTAINS
- Last fall, Devon Wills, The Carole Kleinfelder Head Coach for Harvard Women's Lacrosse, announced that seniors Riley Campbell and Ilana Kofman will serve as captains for the 2024 season.
- Campbell, an attack from Madison, N.J., earned All-Ivy League Second-Team honors her first full season on the team, after her first campaign was cut short due to injury. Starting in 14 of 15 games, Campbell was essential to the lineup, scoring the second most goals on the team.
- Kofman, a midfielder from Longmeadow, Mass., became a regular contributor in 2023, recording 12 goals in 15 games played. Kofman is also a leader in controlling ground balls, being credited with 21.
UP NEXT
The Crimson will travel to North Carolina to face Duke in a Tuesday night game on March 12.
