GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University women's lacrosse team had taken major strides forward when its 2020 season was halted prematurely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fortunately for the Pioneers, four starters opted to utilize the extra year of eligibility given to them by the NCAA, enabling the Pioneers to "run it back" for the 2021 campaign which gets underway this weekend against Southern Wesleyan.
Third-year head coach Joelle-Sara Prata had turned a 4-12 record in her initial season of 2019 into a 3-3 mark when the 2020 season was cut short. With nearly the entire roster back for 2021, the Pioneers will aim for a winning record and their first appearance in the SAC Championship tournament since 2018.
"Having lost over half of the 2020 campaign, we brought back a wealth of experience and knowledge for 2021," said Prata. "With a majority of our roster returning, they came in with a fire to regain what was taken from them last season. This team has some special connection that we are excited to debut."
ATTACK
Sophomore Tia Tuininga (Langley, B.C.) had a stellar freshman season for the Pioneers, piling up 19 goals in six matches to rank second on the squad in both goals and in points with 21. Tuininga was 10th in the SAC in goals and ranked third on the team with 15 draw controls.
Senior Megann McKinney (Waxhaw, N.C.) returned from a season-ending injury in 2019 to finish with seven goals and three assists in six matches last season. McKinney has scored 23 goals and eight assists for 31 points in 21 career contests.
Junior Jessica Spiegel (Apopka, Fla.) had two goals and an assist in six starts last season. She has played in all 22 matches of her career, tallying five goals and 10 assists for 15 points along with 14 ground balls.
Junior Harley Smith (Greeneville, Tenn.) played in three games last season and scored her first career goal in a victory over Tennessee Wesleyan. Smith has played in 15 career matches for the Pioneers.
Freshman Natalie Dagley (Alcoa, Tenn.) was three times named All-Region after amassing 157 goals and 176 ground balls in her high school career for Alcoa High School. Fellow freshman Morgan Correia (New Bedford, Mass.) was an All-Star in lacrosse at New Bedford High School, where she helped the team twice to the state tournament.
MIDFIELD
Juliette Cusano (Davie, Fla.) enters her fifth season one goal shy of tying the Tusculum career goal record with 138. She ranks third in school history in points (157), fourth in ground balls (92), second in caused turnovers (55) and second in draw controls (193). Last season, Cusano had piled up 24 goals, 28 draw controls and 13 caused turnovers in six matches to rank fourth in the conference in all three categories. Cusano is a two-time second-team All-SAC honoree (2018, 2019) and holds the school single-season record with 61 goals set in 2019.
Grad student Eliza Ryan (Old Bridge, N.J.) will enter her fifth season ranked eighth in program history in ground balls with 76 and tied for sixth in caused turnovers with 36. Ryan had two goals and an assist last season and was sixth in the SAC with 11 caused turnovers. In 54 career games, Ryan has 28 goals and 13 assists for 41 points.
Junior Emily Youngblood (Austin, Texas) was third on the Pioneers with 13 goals last season and fourth with 13 draw controls. Youngblood has started all 22 matches over two seasons at Tusculum, scoring 30 goals and 13 assists while picking up 32 ground balls and 55 draw controls, to go along with 14 caused turnovers.
Sophomore Kylie Marek (Plantation, Fla.) ranked fourth on the Pioneers with 10 goals and 12 points as a freshman last season, scoring five of her 10 goals on free-position shots.
Senior Briana Minter (Harrisburg, Pa.) did not appear in any matches in 2020, but scored 42 goals in 29 career contests at St. Andrews University during the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Sophomore Sophia Sesi (Palm Harbor, Fla.) transferred to Tusculum from Ave Maria, where she had four ground balls in six matches, including five starts. Sesi was an All-Star and team captain at Palm Harbor University High School before beginning her collegiate career at Ave Maria.
DEFENSE
Fifth-year player Hailey Sanders (Weddington, N.C.) started all six matches last season and finished with 12 ground balls and one caused turnovers. In 46 career matches, the three-year starter has scored two goals and has 52 ground balls, 19 draw controls and 22 caused turnovers.
Linden Perkins (Knoxville, Tenn.) will begin her fifth season at Tusculum after finishing 2020 with five ground balls and two caused turnovers in six matches, including five starts. Perkins has 26 ground balls and 18 caused turnovers in 35 career contests, which includes 21 starts.
Sophomore Kamryn McNeil (Alpharetta, Ga.) started five matches as a freshman and accumulated seven draw controls, four caused turnovers and two ground balls. Sophomore Leighann Yudin (Stuart, Fla.) appeared in four matches for the Pioneers in her freshman campaign, collecting one ground ball and causing two turnovers.
Senior Bethany Thomas (Greenville, S.C.) moves to defense this season after playing 21 career matches all over the field for the Pioneers. Thomas appeared in three matches last season and collected one assist, her first career point.
GOALKEEPERS
All three goalkeepers return for the Pioneers in 2021, led by senior Kate Pipkin (Annapolis, Md.). Pipkin ranks second in program history with 271 saves and sixth with 85 ground balls, after finishing fourth in the SAC with 41 saves last year and sixth with a .414 save percentage in five starts.
Junior Taylor Floyd (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) is back after sitting out the 2020 season due to injury. Floyd played in four matches during her freshman season of 2019, making 20 saves at a 45.5 percent clip. Sophomore Caroline Monroe (Huntersville, N.C.) played in three matches as a freshman, winning her only start against Newberry with 14 saves in what ended up being the final match of the 2020 season.
