Lacrosse program completes 25th year of competition in 2019Lacrosse program completes 25th year of competition in 2019
Lacrosse

Lacrosse program completes 25th year of competition in 2019

Opens in a new window 2019 Final ACC Statistics

BLACKSBURG – The Virginia Tech lacrosse team finished the 2019 season 8-10, bowing out in the opening round of the ACC tournament to league champion North Carolina 19-9. 
 
All 10 losses were to ranked opposition, in fact the Hokies' schedule was the 13th-toughest in the nation. The ACC was once again well represented in the NCAA tournament with five squads selected, four as top-8 seeds who were in position to host games. Two teams, Carolina and Boston College advanced to the Final Four.
 
Tech finished the season ranked 25 in the IWLCA Coaches Poll.
 


 
 
Three Hokies earned All-Conference honors in 2019; Paige Petty, Emma Crooks and Elena Ricci, all sophomores. Petty who was placed on the first team again, becomes the first Hokie to earn first team honors twice. Her 66 goals and 74 total points scored are both program records. 
 
Ricci, a defender and Crooks, a midfielder each earned their first All-Conference nods in 2019. Crooks was the second leading scorer on the squad with 42 goals and 48 points. She is also the Hokies' primary draw taker. Ricci tallied 39 ground balls and 18 caused turnovers on the season.
 
Crooks, Petty and Ricci all amassed 66 or more draw controls this season, all ranking in the top 10 in a single season at Virginia Tech. Crooks, who led the team with 74, tallied the sixth-most in a single season. 
 
The senior class departs with 38 wins, replacing the class of 2018 as the most successful in program history. Their resume includes wins over seven ranked teams, eight ACC wins, the first ACC tournament victory in program history and the first trip to the NCAA tournament. 
 
The seniors combined for 194 points (153 goals, 41 assists), 178 ground balls, 28 draw controls and 119 caused turnovers in their careers. 
 
This season, however was defined by youth, with head coach John Sung regularly starting a squad with seven or more underclassmen. The Hokies had 37 players on the roster, 22 of which had been on campus for just one or two seasons. Underclassmen got 130 of the 216 starts during the season (60.2 percent).
 
Below is a look at the milestones and records accomplished by the team as well as individuals during the season and where their performances stand in the program record book. 
 
Team records set or tied during the 2019 season:

  • Most points in an away game (35 at ODU)
  • Tied most goals in a home game (23 Radford)
  • Most goals in an away game (23 ODU)
  • Tied most assists in away game (12 ODU)
  • Most assists in a season (101)

 
Paige Petty climbs the charts in multiple categories

  • Most goals in a single season (66)
  • She is sixth all-time in goals (124)
  • She is tied for tenth in points all-time (139)
  • Tied for first for the most points scored in a single season (74)
  • Eighth in career draw controls (133). This season's 68 draws are the seventh most in a single season

 
Mary Claire Byrne concludes a fantastic career 

  • Finishes third in caused turnovers (96), including three single seasons in the top 10 in program history
  • Sixth in ground balls with 128

 Byrne was selected by the IWLCA for its annual Senior All-Star game to take place in Sparks, Maryland on Saturday, June 1.
 
Julia Bolte in the record books

  • Her 53 assists are third most in program history
  • Her 34 assists in 2019 is the second highest single season tally. She had five at Syracuse, tied for the fifth most in a single game. 

 
Morgan Berman etches her name into program history

  • Her 46 ground balls in 2019 is the 10thmost in a single season
  • Eclipsed 100 career saves, finishing the season with 148