FARMVILLE, Va. - The Longwood University women's lacrosse team is ready to get back on the field for its second year as a member of the Big South Conference. After the team's tournament semifinal appearance last season, the Lancers return to action in 2014 under the direction of second-year head coach Elaine Jones.

"I'm really excited for the upcoming season in the Big South," said Jones. "All the teams are very competitive and will be challenging to play. I'm most looking forward to seeing how our team plays and improves throughout the course of the year, and how that improvement prepares them for the Big South Conference Tournament."

This year's squad features 17 returning letterwinners, in addition to three newcomers. When asked for three words that would best define this year's team, Jones described her squad as "committed, excited and motivated."

Game Plan
With one year of conference play in the books, Coach Jones explained that the squad is approaching this season much differently than last year. She feels that putting in all the hard work to create a strong footing last season has prepared the team to be much tougher, physically and mentally, for 2014. The Lancers look to use these skills to be a threat to opponents on both sides of the ball.

"Approaching this season has been a much different experience. Last year, we had a lot of work to do, as we were working with so many puzzle pieces. This year, however, the pieces are solidly in place. Our players learned so much last year and moving forward, I feel they have a great foundation on which to build.

"We intend to approach the season one game at a time and not look too far ahead to our conference games. While I think we have a strong returning offense because we only lost one person, I think our defense will turn out to be better than it was last year. I think it will surprise some teams, so, I'm actually excited about our strategy on both defense and offense."

Team Leadership
Longwood is a balanced squad this year, with 10 upperclassmen and 10 underclassmen on the roster. However, the Lancers have just three seniors in the lineup in 2014 and will therefore look for a group of leaders to emerge.

"I think everyone made so much progress in the fall that it is more of a group of leaders rather than anyone individual," commented Jones. "I think it's going to be a really good overall team effort. Both the junior and senior classes are very strong, and have already done a great job of setting the right example for the younger players to follow."

Returning Veterans
Of the 17 returning letterwinners, nine started for the Lancers last season. Jones has high expectations for her veterans, as she is counting on the upperclassmen to use the progress they have made to help the team improve as a whole.

"I expect the returners to be a year older and wiser," said Jones. "They gained valuable experience last year in so many areas and I've been really impressed with their level of effort and execution of everything they learned. They're all really excited to step on the field and are committed to proving they have what it takes to train and compete at a high level on a daily basis."

Newcomers
The Lancers welcome just three newcomers to the lineup this season. Freshmen Samantha Bryan, Rachel DiGiulian and Madelynn Rollins will look to add depth to an experienced squad.

"I think that all the rookies worked hard in the fall," stated Jones. "They are all adjusting to the college game. I think Madelynn Rollins has adjusted the quickest and should see substantial playing time."

Attack
Senior Lauren Prasnicki will look to lead the Lancers' offensive efforts in 2014. Last season, she was the squad's most productive attacker with a team- and career-best 77 points. A skilled playmaker, she set a program record with 51 assists, while adding 26 goals.

"Lauren has great vision and game sense, which bolster her understanding of what needs to get done on the offensive end," said Jones.

Midfield
Longwood lost just one midfielder to graduation last season. Senior Mary Barondess, and juniors Kacey Norwood and Sarah Arndt are poised to take charge of this position for the team. Barondess scored 33 goals and added seven assists to finish fourth on the squad with 40 points in 2013.

"Mary has improved her presence on the draws, as well as her shooting ability," commented Jones. "We'll look to her to help pace the midfield and help Lauren on attack."

Arndt, who started 14 of 18 games played last year, logged 12 goals and 14 assists for 26 points. Norwood got off to a strong start during her sophomore campaign, tallying 21 points in five games before missing the rest of the season due to an injury.

Defense
Juniors Liz Trainer and Taylor O'Hara will take the reigns in the Longwood backfield. Trainer finished second on the team with 30 groundballs last year, while adding 13 caused turnovers and 12 draw controls. She also logged seven goals and assists for 14 total points. 

"Liz is a versatile defender with a quick check," stated Jones. "She'll do a great job in helping Christian (Acker) lead the defense."

O'Hara, who started 12 of 16 games played, notched 11 groundballs in 2013.

Goalkeeper
Junior Christian Acker returns to anchor the defense. In 2013, she started 14 of 16 games played, while tallying a team-best 115 saves for a .421 save percentage.

"Christian put in a strong showing this fall and is ready to step up to assume the sole responsibility in the goal," said Jones.

Schedule
Longwood opens the new season at home against Navy on Saturday, February 8 at 12 p.m. This year's schedule features nine home games and eight road games for 17 total regular-season contests.

"Our overall schedule represents a nice blend of competitive non-conference and conference games," explained Jones. "Every game will be a challenge, and the strength of our non-conference schedule will help prepare us to play our conference opponents in April."

The Lancers' non-conference slate it composed of the team's first 10 games of the year. Longwood will host in-state, non-league opponents Virginia Tech (2.26, 12 p.m.) and Old Dominion (3.13, 4 p.m.), in addition to Delaware State (2.16, 1 p.m.) and Kennesaw State (3.28, 6 p.m.). Highlighting the non-conference road games are in-state foes George Mason (2.19, 3 p.m.), William and Mary (3.25, 3 p.m.) and Richmond (3.30, 1 p.m.). The squad will also travel to Elon (2.14, 4 p.m.) and Jacksonville (3.8, TBD).

"This year, we face several non-conference opponents we played last year, but still have a few whom we'll be playing for the first time, so we don't know that much about them," said Jones. "Once again, we'll just take it one game at a time, using every game as an opportunity to get better."

Longwood opens its Big South campaign with a pair of road games at Coastal Carolina (4.4, 6 p.m.) and at Winthrop (4.6, 12 p.m.). The squad then plays four-straight home contests against Presbyterian (4.11, 4 p.m.), Campbell (4.13, 1 p.m.), High Point (4.19, 1 p.m.) and Davidson (4.25, 4 p.m.), before closing the regular-season at in-state and conference rival Liberty (4.27, 1 p.m.).

"Our conference schedule will also be tough because all the teams will be working towards getting a favorable seed in the tournament. One of our goals is definitely to finish as one of the top four seeds so we have the opportunity to host a first round game."

Postseason
The 2014 Big South Conference Women's Lacrosse Championship will take place on April 30-May 4. In a change from last season, all eight league teams will qualify for this year's tournament. The top four seeds will host the bottom four seeds in the quarterfinals on April 30. The semifinals and finals will then be played at the No. 1 seed's campus site on May 2 and May 4, respectively.

"I think it's a nice opportunity for everyone to be part of the tournament," commented Jones on the format change. "It's an opportunity to play one more game. It also creates one more hurdle you have to overcome to reach the championship game, but if that's the process, then we'll be up for the challenge.

"Our ultimate goal is to win the conference tournament, but we have a long way to go to accomplish that goal," concluded the coach. "At this time, we are diligently working to prepare for our opening game against Navy and everyone is looking forward to facing the first competition of the 2014 season."