WEST BABYLON, N.Y. – Two-time defending conference champion Mercy headlines the 2024 East Coast Conference Women’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll, as voted on by the league’s seven head coaches and announced on Tuesday afternoon. Mercy’s Lindsey Shimborske (Farmingdale, N.Y.) earned ECC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year honors while Molloy’s Megan Rugolo (Oceanside, N.Y.) was named the ECC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.
Mercy, who begins the season ranked No. 17 in the Inside Lacrosse (IL) Women/Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Top 25 Coaches Preseason Poll and No. 18 in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Magazine Top 20 Media Preseason Poll, took five of seven first-place votes to top the poll with 47 points. The Mavericks won their third ECC title in four seasons alongside a fourth straight ECC Regular-Season Championship in 2023. Mercy has reached the ECC final in each of the last six seasons and returns five All-Conference players in Shimborske (1st), attacker Leena Moussa (1st), midfielders Erin Shimborske (1st) and Kelly Rosenfeld (2nd), and defender Christina Lopreato (2nd).
The 2023 ECC Defensive Player of the Year and 2022 ECC Rookie of the Year, L. Shimborske posted 55 ground balls, 55 caused turnovers, and 83 draw controls with two goals and three assists as a sophomore last season, setting Mercy’s single-season school record for caused turnovers and ranking fourth nationally in caused turnovers per game (3.06). L. Shimborske was named the ECC Women’s Lacrosse Championship’s Most Outstanding Player after recording six ground balls and four caused turnovers in Mercy’s 9-8 win over Roberts Wesleyan in the ECC Championship title game and went on to earn IWLCA Division II All-American Second Team honors as well as a USA Lacrosse Magazine All-American Honorable Mention recognition. She finished the season as the ECC leader (and fourth nationally) in caused turnovers per game (3.06), second in the ECC in ground balls per game (3.06), and fourth in the ECC in draw controls per game (4.61).
With 42 points and two first-place votes, Roberts Wesleyan is No. 2 in the poll on the heels of a third straight appearance in the ECC Championship final, having most recently won it all in 2021. The Redhawks join Mercy in earning preseason recogition on the national stage, receiving votes in the IL Women/IWLCA Top 25 Coaches Preseason Poll. The Redhawks return six All-Conference players that earned a share of last spring’s ECC Regular-Season Championship, all of whom contributed significantly in Roberts Wesleyan’s 9-8 loss to Mercy in the ECC Championship title game in First Team attacker Annie Mulhall (2 goals, 1 assist), First Team midfielder Emma Blumenstock (1 goal) and Second Team midfielder Sophia Podszebka (9 draw controls), First Team defender Madelyn Robinson (3 caused turnovers) and Second Team defender Emma Taylor (1 ground ball), and Second Team goalkeeper Shawna Lesmerises (9 saves).
Molloy comes in No. 3 in the preseason poll with 37 points. The Lions, who received votes in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Magazine Top 20 Media Preseason Poll, earned a share of last spring’s ECC Regular-Season Championship and return five All-Conference honorees in Rugolo (1st), fellow attacker Alexa Amorison (2nd), midfielder Joanna Mauceri (1st), and defenders Reilly Brady (1st) and Carly Howell (2nd).
The 2023 ECC Attacker of the Year, Rugolo ranked in the nation’s top 25 in four categories, with an ECC-leading 5.12 points per game (11th), an ECC-leading 87 total points (21st), 2.12 assists per game (22nd), and 36 total assists (25th). In total, Rugolo tallied 14 games of three or more points and two or more goals, led by a career-high nine points with five goals and four assists at Daemen on April 8. The attacker also added 38 draw controls, 27 ground balls, and 16 caused turnovers and capped an outstanding season with IWLCA All-Region recognition.
The final expected conference tournament participant is D’Youville at No. 4. The Saints have made the ECC Championship in each of the last two seasons and return four All-Conference selections in 2023 ECC Goalkeeper of the Year Brian Stworzydlak (1st), 2023 ECC Rookie of the Year midfielder Sam Newlin (2nd), attacker Sydney Gordon (2nd), and defender Lauren Parker (2nd).
Daemen (24 points) is next at No. 5, followed by St. Thomas Aquinas (14 points) and District of Columbia (7 points), rounding out the poll in No. 6 and No. 7, respectively.
2024 ECC Women's Lacrosse Preseason Poll
1. Mercy
47 points (5 first-place votes)
13-6 (5-1 ECC) in 2023
2. Roberts Wesleyan
42 points (2 first-place votes)
12-6 (5-1 ECC) in 2023
3. Molloy
37 points
12-5 (5-1 ECC) in 2023
4. D'Youville
25 points
8-10 (3-3 ECC) in 2023
5. Daemen
24 points
7-9 (2-4 ECC) in 2023
6. St. Thomas Aquinas
14 points
2-12 (1-5 ECC) in 2023
7. District of Columbia
7 points
1-11 (0-6 ECC) in 2023
2024 ECC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Megan Rugolo, Jr., A, Molloy
2024 ECC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Lindsey Shimborske, Jr., D, Mercy
Season Openers
Saturday, February 17
District of Columbia at Virginia State, 1:00 PM
Roberts Wesleyan at Adelphi, 1:00 PM
St. Thomas Aquinas at American International, Time TBA
Wednesday, February 21
Molloy vs. Franklin Pierce, 4:00 PM
Thursday, February 22
Daemen at Walsh (Ohio), 2:00 PM
Saturday, February 24
D'Youville vs. Post, 11:00 AM
Mercy at West Chester, 1:00 PM