Feb. 7, 2018
By Matt Paras
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The Atlantic Coast Conference revealed its preseason poll on Wednesday, featuring the No. 15-ranked University of Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team at No. 5 in the conference. The ACC also announced that Samantha Giacolone and Hannah Proctor were each selected to the Preseason All-ACC Team.
The Irish finished tied for third last season after a 4-3 record in conference play. That tied for the most ACC wins since joining the conference in 2014.
Giacolone started all 19 games last season for the Irish. She made 180 saves on the year and had a 10.75 goals against average. Giacolone was named the IWLCA National Player of the Week on March 29 following her performance in the road win against No. 4 Syracuse.
Giacolone earned her second preseason honor in as many days. On Tuesday, she was named an honorable mention preseason All-American by Inside Lacrosse for the second straight season.
Proctor started 18 of 19 games last season for Notre Dame. She collected 27 ground balls, caused 14 turnovers, recorded eight draw controls and scored a goal last year. Proctor scooped up a career-high five ground balls against Virginia Tech and scored her first career goal in the win over Ohio State.
Preseason ACC Coaches Poll
- North Carolina (59 points, 4 first-place votes)
- Syracuse (53 points, 2 first-place votes)
- Boston College (48 points, 2 first-place votes)
- Virginia (39 points)
- Notre Dame (37 points)
- Duke (23 points)
- Virginia Tech (19 points)
- Louisville (10 points
Preseason All-ACC Team
A – Sam Appuzzo, Jr., Boston College
A – Ela Hazar, Sr., North Carolina
A – Riley Donahue, Sr., Syracuse
M – Dempsey Arsenault, Jr., Boston College
M – Maddie Crutchfield, Sr., Duke
M – Maggie Bill, Sr., North Carolina
M – Marie McCool, Sr., North Carolina
M – Kasey Behr, Sr., Virginia
M – Maggie Jackson, Jr., Virginia
D – Elizabeth Miller, Jr., Boston College
D – Erin Kelly, So., North Carolina
D – Hannah Proctor, Jr., Notre Dame
D – Alexa Radziewicz, Jr., Syracuse
D – Kaitlin Luzik, Jr., Virginia
G – Lauren Daly, Jr., Boston College
G – Samantha Giacolone, Jr, Notre Dame
Up Next
The Irish open their 2018 regular season versus Boston College at Noon ET on Feb. 10 at Loftus Sports Center. Admission is free for all fans.
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Matt Paras, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since January 2018. In his role, he coordinates all media efforts for the Notre Dame women’s lacrosse and cross country/track & field programs. A native of Warwick, Rhode Island, Paras is a graduate of the University of Louisville where he completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Sport Administration. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, he worked at Vanderbilt University as the sports information contact for the women’s soccer and lacrosse programs.