The 2017 college lacrosse season concluded just a week ago. While it may seem too soon to look ahead to next year, it's still a fun exercise. Over the next five days, US Lacrosse Magazine will make an early attempt to size up a Division I top 25 for 2018.
NO. 15 TOWSON
2017 record: 12-7 (4-2 CAA)
Last seen: Starting out strong, but disappointing down the stretch, falling to Elon in overtime in the CAA tournament and unranked High Point by six in the NCAA tournament.
Senior starts lost: 78 of 228 (34.2 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 111 of 376 points (29.5 percent)
Initial forecast: Towson opened its 2017 season with a heartbreaking, one-goal loss to a tough Stony Brook squad, then dropped a two-goal decision to Penn State. The Tigers had potential early on, defeating Notre Dame 14-11 in March, but its CAA slate came back to haunt them. In the regular season, they lost to James Madison by four and Hofstra by two. Then in the CAA tournament, Elon upset them in overtime, and in the NCAA tournament, High Point threw them a curve ball, topping them 21-15. It wasn’t the ending Towson had hope for, and will start 2018 without its assist leader Samantha Brookhart. However, its four best scorers are back – Carly Tellekamp, Natalie Sulmonte, Kaitlyn Montalbano and Emily Gillingham. The Tigers’ firepower offense should be hard to stop next year.
NO. 14 DUKE
2017 record: 8-9 (1-6 ACC)
Last seen: Finishing as the unexpected bottom team of the ACC with back-to-back losses to state rival North Carolina, failing to punch its ticket to the NCAA tournament.
Senior starts lost: 67 of 204 (32.8 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 46 of 275 points (16.7 percent)
Initial forecast: Duke had one of its most disappointing seasons in 2017, failing to advance to the NCAA tournament with only one conference win over Boston College. Its six other ACC games were lost by a combined 35 goals with two being one-goal games and another two having a goal differential of 12 or more. The Blue Devils lacked consistency and couldn’t stay strong in the conference tournament, falling to North Carolina for the second time, again by 12 goals. However, leading scorer Maddie Crutchfield will be back next year, as will point leader Kyra Harney. Draw specialist Olivia Jenner also returns, as well as all three goalies. Duke loses a 10-member senior class, but next year’s squad should be able to take this year as a learning experience and improve.
NO. 13 VIRGINIA
2017 record: 12-9 (4-3 ACC)
Last seen: Failing to raise the bar after an average 2016, falling to Syracuse by three in the ACC semis and to ACC champion North Carolina by 11 in the NCAA second round.
Senior starts lost: 98 of 252 (38.9 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 148 of 363 points (40.8 percent)
Initial forecast: Virginia finished in the middle of the pack in the ACC this year with wins over Notre Dame, Duke, Louisville and Virginia Tech. It only lost to the eventual NCAA champion Maryland by five goals, but its worst loss was to last year’s national champion North Carolina by 10 goals. The Cavaliers had an up-and-down season, ending with another loss to the Tar Heels in the NCAA tournament, this time by 11. They will start 2018 without this year’s leading scorer Kelly Reese, but will have their all-around midfielder Maggie Jackson, who leads in points, draw controls, ground balls and caused turnovers. Starting goalie Rachel Vander Kolk also returns, plus an entire support system around Jackson on offense, including Kasey Behr, Sammy Mueller and Avery Shoemaker.
NO. 12 NOTRE DAME
2017 record: 11-8 (4-3 ACC)
Last seen: Ending its season on a three-game losing streak, including twice to Boston College in the regular season finale and ACC tournament, and then to Cornell in the NCAA first round.
Senior starts lost: 99 of 228 (43.4 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 199 of 370 points (53.8 percent)
Initial forecast: Notre Dame had a similar season as Virginia in 2017, but the Cavaliers had the head-to-head win over the Irish, which defeated Duke, Louisville, Syracuse and Virginia Tech. Notre Dame’s win over the Orange highlighted its ultimate potential, winning the 50-50 balls on the ground and the draw, whose play was boosted by a stellar second-half performance by goalie Samantha Giacolone. Good news is she’s back for the Irish in 2018, but the bad news is they lost one of the best attackers in the game, Cortney Fortunato. Also graduating was the next best in points, Casey Pearsall, who was also their leader on the draw. Samantha Lynch, Nikki Ortega and Savannah Buchanan will need to step in those leadership positions on the offense next season, with Buchanan also filling in on the draw.
NO. 11 USC
2017 record: 18-4 (8-0 MPSF)
Last seen: Cruising through its conference slate, defeating rising Colorado for the MPSF crown, then upsetting Florida and falling to Boston College in the NCAA tournament.
Senior starts lost: 123 of 264 (46.6 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 322 of 482 points (66.8 percent)
Initial forecast: USC started its season with an exciting, overtime win over Northwestern, but then fell to Florida by five in the next game. Its spring break trip on the East Coast was disappointing, netting one- and two-goal losses to Cornell and Stony Brook, respectively. Yet the Trojans finished its regular season on a high note with eight straight wins, followed by assuring its dominance in the MPSF with a five-goal win over rising power Colorado in the conference final. They continued cruising in the NCAA tournament, first beating Jacksonville and then avenging its loss to the seeded Gators with a 15-12 win. USC ultimately fell to Boston College by six, but still had moments to be proud of in 2017. Looking ahead to next season, they will no longer have their program’s first-ever All-American in midfielder Michaela Michael and also lose a wealth of offensive talent in Cynthia Del Core, Kylie Drexel, Gabby McMahon and Drew Jackson. A lot of holes need to be filled, but USC has players ready to step up in the new Pac-12, including rising senior midfielder Lydia Sutton and rising sophomore midfielder Kerrigan Miller. Goalie Gussie Johns will be a staple in net next year as a senior as well.