It was a wake-up call when Trinity rolled through Springfield women’s lacrosse on March 5, defeating the Pride 13-5.
Getting shut out for the last 26 minutes was humbling, yet since then, a month has passed – and so have seven wins. History was made, and the Pride is now more dominant than ever, making a strong push at the NEWMAC Championship.
Springfield’s 2025 season has been nothing short of spectacular. The 10-1 start for the Pride is their best in program history. Springfield is near the top in almost every Division III national statistical category recorded through their first 11 games. Head coach Jenn Thomas knows her team is destined for tremendous success.
“[10-1] is good, but it’s the standard and the expectation,” Thomas said. “We’re happy and excited, but we keep telling our team, although our record is 10-1 right now, we need to have that construction hat on to keep building and fixing things. Even if we beat teams by 15 goals, we can always do better. How can we perfect everything we do?”
As Thomas has expressed many times, the team’s leadership has been a big part of their recent results. Talent isn’t hard to find, but Thomas’ crew has created strong voices on and off the field to string together 10 wins in their first 11 games. The grad students have been ‘at the forefront of that success, but Thomas also credits the age group below them.
“Our seniors are the ones that are really jumping on that bandwagon and leading it,” Thomas said. “I think this year, our leadership is the most elite I’ve seen in my three years here. It’s because we’re so driven for the one common goal: to win a NEWMAC Championship and move forward to the NCAA Tournament.”
In terms of talent, it’s endless for the Pride. Goalkeeper Kate Laico has been a brick wall, with the seventh-best save percentage in the country (.556), along with the rest of the defense, which has allowed the sixth-least goals per game. The ball is usually in Springfields’ offensive zone due to the 64 percent draw control wins, which is also sixth best in the country, and it all adds up to the 10th-best scoring margin, beating teams by an average of 10 goals per game, and 14 goals per game since their loss to No. 15 Trinity.
The offense is a balanced attack behind Sam Andresen, Lily Johnson and Izzy Lalancette, combining for 75 goals on the season. 17 of the 19 combined attackers and midfielders have had at least one goal this year, but one of the best came from Sophie Adams. In a game against Wheaton last weekend, where the Pride won 18-4, Adams took a tough but slow bouncer that ricocheted off the Lyon goalkeeper and into the back of the net. Adams looked stunned to see her first career goal happen that way, and the entire sideline and the crowd went crazy.
“I joke around and say our sideline is like a nightclub,” Thomas said. “This year, we have a team-first mindset. Our older players are always setting up the younger players for success.”
The next three weeks ultimately decide the season for the Pride. With two games this week and two games the week after against MIT and Babson, who they split to last year, the intensity is only going uphill. Graduate assistant coach Katie Martel is focused on Springfield controlling the draw against MIT and Babson.
“If we can’t do that, we’re going to have to fight back the entire time,” Martel said. “It’s a team effort, and everyone must play well. We can’t rely on one person to run the whole show.”
The Pride take on Westfield State home Thursday at 6 p.m. on Stagg Field.