Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse Announces 2024 College Draft Class; the group includes Burns, Doucette, Spilis

Phillylacrosse.com, published 8/05/24
Extract from the press release

Sixteen collegiate stars – including three from Philadelphia – have been invited to make their professional debuts in the league’s fourth season at USA Lacrosse headquarters in Maryland this summer, from July 18 to August 11.

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Meet the 16 athletes invited to participate in the 2024 lacrosse season.

MADISON DOUETTE (UNIONVILLE), GOALKEEPER, JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY

Guard Madison Doucette transferred to Johns Hopkins after four years at Northwestern.

As a Wildcat, she led the league in goals against average (11.06) in 2021 and ranked second in saves (166) in 2022.

Doucette has 169 saves for the Hopkins Blue & Black this season, which leads the Big Ten.

MADDIE BURNS (GERMANTOWN ACADEMY), DEFENSE, MICHIGAN

Defender Maddie Burns is a 2024 Tewaaraton nominee and three-time first-team All-Big Ten honoree (2022-24).

Burns finished the regular season with a team-high 26 caused turnovers and 34 ground balls. She owns the Michigan career ground ball record with 104.

CASSIDY SPILIS (SENECA-NJ), MIDFIELDER, RUTGERS

Cassidy Spilis is Rutgers’ all-time leader in field goals scored (266). She broke her own single-season scoring record with 74 goals in 2024, which ranks second nationally. She added 98 draw controls, 40 ground balls and 36 caused turnovers during the 2024 season.

The 2024 Tewaaraton Award nominee was unanimously named the 2024 Big Ten Midfielder of the Year for the second time in three seasons. She already won the award in 2022 and is the first two-time unanimous Midfielder of the Year in Big Ten history.

Spilis also holds program records for career draw controls (313) and points (281). She is a four-time first-team All-Big Ten selection, a three-time All-American and a three-time IWLCA All-Region honoree.

CASSIDY WEEKS, MIDFIELD, BOSTON COLLEGE

Cassidy Weeks scored a career-high 34 goals and 43 points in his final season at Boston College, helping the Eagles win a second straight ACC championship.

She received second team All-America honors from the IWLCA, Inside Lacrosse and USA Lacrosse Magazine in 2023.

IZZY SCANE, ATTACK, NORTHWEST
Winner of the 2023 Tewaaraton Award, Izzy Scane was also named IWLCA Player of the Year and won the Honda Award for Lacrosse.

Through the 2024 season, Scane has 70 goals and 87 points as Northwestern won its fourth Big Ten Tournament championship. She was named tournament MVP.

Scane scored 358 goals with the Wildcats as the program’s all-time leading scorer, tying Charlotte North’s NCAA scoring record. She will have the opportunity to break the record in the NCAA tournament.

She led the team to the 2023 NCAA Championship. She is a two-time IWLCA First Team All-America selection and a two-time Big Ten Forward of the Year (2021, 2023).

ERIN COYKENDALL, ATTACK, NORTHWEST

Forward Erin Coykendall was a 2023 IWLCA First Team All-America selection and a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award. She helped Northwestern win its 2023 NCAA championship, leading the team with 50 assists. She received first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2022 and 2023.

Coykendall has 35 goals and 44 assists this season with the Wildcats and recently helped the team win the 2024 Big Ten Tournament title, earning a spot on the All-Tournament team.

ELLIE MASERA, MIDFIELDER, STONY BROOK

Ellie Masera was named the 2023 Colonial Athletic Association Midfielder of the Year after scoring 71 goals and 95 points. She won America East Conference Midfielder of the Year honors in 2022.

The 2023 IWLCA and Inside Lacrosse Second Team All-American has a career-high 104 points, including 35 assists and 69 goals in 2024.

Masera led the Seawolves to its second straight CAA championship with three goals against Drexel University. She was named Most Outstanding Performance and earned All-Championship team recognition.

SYDNEY BALANCE, DEFENSE, BOSTON COLLEGE

Sydney Scales is a two-time IWLCA All-America selection, including first-team recognition in 2023 when she posted a career-high 37 caused turnovers.

She was named the 2024 ACC Defender of the Year, becoming the first defender since Notre Dame’s Barbara Sullivan to repeat the honors. Scales also earned ACC Tournament MVP and Eagle of the Year recognition.

The defender collected 34 ground balls and caused 33 turnovers throughout the 2024 season en route to her second ACC title. She is also a two-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference first team selection and won the NCAA championship as a freshman in 2021.

SYDNI BLACK, ATTACK, LOYOLA MARYLAND

Forward Sydni Black received IWLCA All-Mid-Atlantic Region First Team and All-Patriot League First Team recognition in 2023. She was named to the award watch list Tewaaraton in 2022 and 2023.

Throughout the 2024 season, she achieved career highs in goals (73) and points (101). She received All-Patriot League first team honors and a Tewaaraton Award top 25 semifinalist. Black finished the regular season ranked sixth in NCAA Division I in goals.

Black was named the Patriot League Championship Most Valuable Player after Loyola’s overtime victory over Navy to win the title.

EMILY STERLING, GOALKEEPER, MARYLAND

Emily Sterling is a two-time Big Ten Conference Goalkeeper of the Year (2022, 2023). She ranks third in Maryland’s career save rankings with 657 career saves.

She has already been named IWLCA Division I Goalkeeper of the Year, IWLCA All-American Lacrosse First Team, and a 2022 Honda Award finalist.

Through 17 games during the 2024 season, she has a .526 save percentage with 160 saves. She was named a nominee for the 2024 Tewaaraton Award.

JACKIE WOLAK, ATTACK, NOTRE DAME

2024 ACC Forward of the Year Jackie Wolak was also named a Tewaaraton nominee and first-team All-ACC honoree. She had 92 points throughout the 2024 season, leading Notre Dame in goals (54) and assists (38).

Wolak has already earned first-team All-America honors from the IWLCA and USA Lacrosse Magazine in 2023.

ISABELLE PETERSON, ATTACK, JAMES MADISON UNIVERSITY

Isabelle Peterson finishes her college career as James Madison’s all-time leader in goals (291), points (353) and draws (322). She received first-team All-Conference recognition from the American Athletic Conference in 2024, posting 75 points and 65 goals.

Peterson was a two-time IWLCA All-America selection and became the fourth player in James Madison history to be a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award in 2023. She was named the American Forward of the Year. Athlete Conference after winning the Colonial Athletic Association player title. Honors of the year in 2022.

MEGHAN BALL, DEFENSE, MARYLAND

Meghan Ball played at Rutgers University for four seasons where she was named the 2023 Big Ten Defender of the Year before transferring to Maryland for her 2024 graduate season.

Bell is nominated for the 2024 Tewaaraton. She made 64 draw controls, 35 caused turnovers and recovered 34 ground balls.

She is Rutgers’ all-time leader in turnovers caused (154) and draw controls (308). She is a four-time first-team All-Big Ten honoree (2021-24).

BELLE SMITH, MIDFIELD, BOSTON COLLEGE

Belle Smith recently received her second consecutive Midfielder of the Year honor, becoming the first athlete since AU Pro Lacrosse midfielder Ally Mastroianni to repeat (2021-22). She has a career-high 39 draws during the 2024 season, in addition to 37 goals, 14 assists and 15 caused turnovers.

Smith was named to the ACC all-tournament team after helping the Eagles win their second straight ACC title. She is a three-time IWLCA All-American, including first-team honors in 2022 and 2023. She was named the ACC Rookie of the Year in 2021.

TRINITY MCPHERSON, DEFENSE, DENVER

Trinity McPherson spent four years at Johns Hopkins before transferring to Denver in 2022. During the 2023 and 2024 seasons with Denver, she totaled 138 fouls, caused 75 turnovers and recovered 100 ground balls.

McPherson led the Pioneers’ defensive charge this season en route to the Big East tournament title. She was voted Big East Defensive Player of the Year. She was also named to the All-Big East first team.

She has already earned IWLCA, Inside Lacrosse and USA Lacrosse Second-Team All-America honors in 2023.

EMMA TYRRELL, MIDFIELDER, SYRACUSE

Emma Tyrrell has 58 goals and 18 assists for Syracuse during the 2024 season.

She is a three-time All-ACC member, including two first-team nominations, and earned third-team All-America honors from USA Lacrosse Magazine in 2023. She is one of eight players in the history of ‘Orange with at least 250 career points.

During her career with the Orange, she collected 257 points, including 185 goals and 72 assists.