Lining the entrance of Klöckner Stadium is a row of concrete columns, regally adorned with engraved metal which denotes each national championship won by the teams that call the stadium home. Together, Virginia’s men’s soccer, men’s lacrosse and women’s lacrosse teams have claimed 17 national titles.
Yet women’s lacrosse accounts for just three of them, and it has been over 20 years since the latest one. Men’s lacrosse won a national title in 2021, and men’s soccer in 2014, but women’s lacrosse has not even reached the title game since 2007.
That could very well change this season. The Cavaliers, ranked No. 9 by Inside Lacrosse ahead of Friday’s season opener at Klöckner against Liberty, are young and feature a powerhouse sophomore class. They are also coming off arguably the program’s best season in over a decade.
“We’ve got all-stars from top to bottom who lay it all out on the line for each other,” Coach Sonia LaMonica said. “That’s important.”
Last year’s season was, in many ways, a rebuilding season for Virginia, with freshmen playing a lot of minutes and a new coach at the helm. Julie Myers, who had led the program for 28 years, resigned after the 2023 season, leaving the future of the program questionable. Director of Athletics Carla Williams named LaMonica the new head coach in July 2023.
But as last season progressed, it became clear it was far from just a rebuild. LaMonica led Virginia to a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament — its best since 2008 — and a regular season that featured the program’s most wins since 2007.
Despite eventual postseason losses against No. 4 Syracuse in the ACC quarterfinal and No. 10 Florida in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Virginia managed ACC upsets in the regular season against No. 14 North Carolina and future national champion Boston College. Those wins, and LaMonica’s ability to bring Virginia to a record-breaking ranking, promise another great season.
LaMonica is entering this season with a roster dotted with talent, and she and her team are hoping to carry their momentum forward.
“It’s just been really fun to be able to pick up where we left off and to cultivate what this year’s team is all about,” LaMonica said. “They’re 100 percent on board … when you’ve got that kind of motivation, that makes life a lot easier for them and our coaching staff.”
Much of the Cavaliers’ success last season came because of their senior class, led by All-ACC first-team selection senior midfielder Morgan Schwab. Schwab holds program records in career assists with 159 and single-game assists with eight, and three other seniors and graduate attacker Katia Carnevale were named to the All-ACC second team. But they all graduated after the season.
Despite crucial losses from that graduating class, Virginia’s current sophomore class is poised to fill the gap. Multiple players in the group exceeded expectations in their freshman season and are key returners heading into this campaign. The performance of the sophomore class has not gone unnoticed by older players, either, as their presence this preseason is making an impact already.
“It’s been really great just to see them step up in leadership roles and use their voices a little bit more,” senior attacker Kate Miller said. “I think last year it was easy with so many upperclassmen for them to stay on the quieter end, but I think the coaches and us upperclassmen have been pushing for them to really start just speaking up and sharing what they have to say.”
Leading the way in this class is sophomore midfielder Kate Galica, who ended last season as the ACC Freshman of the Year after setting a Virginia single-season freshman record with 97 draw controls. Galica’s presence, particularly on the draw, will be crucial to setting up Virginia’s offense for success.
There to lead the offense will be sophomore attacker Madison Alaimo, an All-ACC Freshman team selection who set a single-season freshman record with 27 assists. Alaimo’s experience also extends internationally after she helped Team USA win the World Lacrosse Women’s U20 Championship. After a strong freshman campaign and experience on the international stage, Alaimo’s impact should be immediate this season for Virginia.
“She’s just an exceptional player and she has no problems quarterbacking this offensive unit from behind the cage,” LaMonica said of Alaimo. “She’s quite versatile, so we’ll continue to build on her versatility and allow her to play in some areas that keep our opponents guessing.”
Alaimo, Galica, and their sophomore counterparts bring experience and talent to Virginia’s roster. They showed up big in their first season in Charlottesville, tying with Clemson for the most representation in voting for the All-ACC Freshman team. N
Another strong group of freshmen will debut Friday — six of whom are on Inside Lacrosse’s Power 100 Incoming Freshman Rankings, highlighted by No. 23 Payton Sfreddo and No. 46 Alexis Reilly. Combine the strength of the incoming recruits with redshirt freshman defender Cece Webb and LaMonica’s guidance, and Virginia can no doubt return to national dominance.
After Friday’s opener against Liberty, Virginia will face three ranked opponents in a row, headlined by a trip to No. 17 Princeton. A couple easier games give way to the beginning of conference play and a showdown on the road against No. 4 North Carolina.
The ACC this season is its typical prickly self, with No. 1 Boston College standing as the obvious frontrunner. Virginia’s confrontation with the Eagles arrives in April, right after a matchup with No. 7 Maryland. That gauntlet, and the regular-season finale against Virginia Tech that follows, will prepare Virginia for the postseason.
The postseason will be a race to Boston, where the Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championships will be held in May. The Cavaliers have plenty of potential to stand out in a talented ACC and make it there.
“We’ve got a group that continues to believe and we’re vying for national championships and we’re not shying away from any of that,” LaMonica said. “We’re in the toughest conference in the country, we play an incredibly tough schedule, but all these things are what make us better. So bring it on.”
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