Once again one of the most successful programs at Mary Washington College in 2002, the women's lacrosse team strengthened its position as one of the top NCAA Division III programs in the nation. The Eagles, who lost eight players from its 2001 NCAA final four squad (including two of the top scorers in school history, the national defender of the year, and its starting goalie who was named to the NCAA All-Championship team), returned to the final four with seven new starters in the lineup while playing the toughest schedule in the nation.

Along the way, the accolades poured in, as six players were named all-conference, four were named all-region, and seniors Beth Curran and Briana Gervat were named IWLCNUSL AlI-Americans. The women's lacrosse program at Mary Washington College has in the course of the past four seasons developed into one of the best in the nation among NCAA Division III schools, developing. a winning. tradition that has resulted in three straight trips to the NCAA Tournament and two consecutive appearances in the final four.

Since 1999, the Eagles have won 53 games, the most in any four year stretch in school history, and lost just 17 games, good for a .757 winning percentage, among the best in the nation. MWC has also been successful in the NCAA Tournament, winning five of eight games in their three appearances in the national championship tournament. Along the way, the Eagles have broken nearly every school record, including team records for wins, winning percentage, longest winning streak, NCAA all-tournament selection scoring offense, defense, and achieving its highest national ranking of fourth after each of the past two seasons. MWC has been ranked nationally in both offense and defense nearly every year, ranking in the top ten in ground balls and caused turnovers after the 2002 season.

Individually, MWC players have shattered every school record in the current era and have been recognized on the national scene like never before. Since 1999, seven different Eagles have earned All-America status, including Bridget Geiman, the school's all-time leading scorer, who was a three-time All-American, Briana Cervar, a two-time All-America selection, and Kate Weller, the 360lacrosse.com National Defender of the Year in 2001. Following the 2002 season defender Beth Curran was honored' as the South Jersey Women's Lacrosse Club's Division III Defender of the Year. Eagle players have been honored with numerous regional and conference accolades along the way. Coach Dana Hall has also received attention on the grandest scale, being named the NCAA Division III National Coach of the Year by 3GOLacrosse.com after leading MWC to the final four in 2001.

This winning tradition has. come from hard work on the part of the players, who have taken off-season and fall conditioning and practicing to a new level. Also, Coach Hall continues to rank among the best recruiters in the nation, and MWC's rosters bear that out, as the 2002 team carried players from seven different states, including lacrosse hotbeds Baltimore/Annapolis, MD, Long Island, NY, and southern New Jersey. This increased commitment has been necessary, as Mary Washington has increased. the difficulty of its schedule each year. In each of the past two seasons, MWC has played each of the other three final four schools, and was computed to have the most difficult schedule in the nation by LaxPower.com for the 2002 season.