Recruiting rankings: Impact of New England women in D-1 | Part II

Gina-Marie Ricciotti amassed 102 goals as a junior at Bridgewater-Raynham (Mass.) and is headed to Harvard. (Courtesy)

With colleges and universities examining and announcing plans for fall semesters, more than 100 graduated senior girls from New England who are committed to Division 1 programs are waiting to see how their schools will handle reopenings so they can join lacrosse activities in the fall.

In this three-part series that began on Wednesday and will continue on Friday, we’ll examine and rank the programs that will see the biggest impacts from their New England recruits, both with quality and quantity.

Today, we’ll reveal the programs, among all the schools nationally that sponsor Division 1 lacrosse, that came in sixth through 10th in our rankings. We’ll count down the top five on Friday.

Here is a look at the rankings:

In Part I here, we ranked the Division 1 programs that ranked 11th through 20th in terms of a New England impact in their incoming recruiting classes.

6. Harvard

New England recruits: 2
Inside Lacrosse top 40: 1

Gina-Marie Ricciotti always knew she wanted to play lacrosse at a high level, at a school with great academics. It took her while, though, to realize Harvard was a possibility.

“I always thought it was pretty unreachable,” she said.

Ranked No. 23 among Class of 2020 prospects by Inside Lacrosse, Ricciotti amassed 102 goals and 60 assists as a junior at Bridgewater-Raynham (Mass.), earning her second high school All-America honor.

Coaches laud her work ethic, non-stop motor, and desire to take on new challenges and work on them until she succeeds. The Mass Elite product will join a rebuilding Harvard program under Devon Wills.

Midfielder Ilana Kofman from Western Mass. power Longmeadow is also headed to Cambridge. She was a central figure on the Longmeadow team that got nipped by Madison Ahern (Cohasset, Mass.) and Notre Dame Academy in the Division 1 final in 2019, 8-7, and would have been seeking to take the final step this spring.

7. Duke

New England recruits: 3
Inside Lacrosse top 40: 0

Maddie McCorkle (Hanover, N.H.) is the latest Division 1 player to come out of a strong Hanover program.

The daughter of Dartmouth College assistant football coach Sammy McCorkle, who was a standout football player himself at the University of Florida, she made regular drives of two-plus hours to play club lacrosse with Boston-area Revolution.

“She drives through New Hampshire to play with us,” said her Revolution coach, Meg Reddy. “It says something when someone does that in terms of commitment.”

Midfielder Katie Keller is part of the class after a standout career at Sacred Heart-Greenwich (Conn.). Jane Charlton out of Connecticut powerhouse New Canaan and SoundCrosse, who can play midfield of defense, is another good get for the explosive Blue Devils, whose 17.7 goals this spring ranked fifth in Division 1.

8. Bryant

New England recruits: 3
Inside Lacrosse top 40: 0

Before COVID-19 left spring sports in its wake, Chamberlaine Bell of Bedford and Lily Auger of Pinkerton might have found themselves on a collision course for the Division 1 title in New Hampshire (though Bishop Guertin probably would have had a say as well).

Now, the two scoring standouts can look forward to a future as teammates, each finding their own way to Bryant.

“People were expecting (players in our class) to get a bunch of offers immediately,” said Bell. “Day one. But I wanted to take it slower and see some other schools. Some were interested and some dropped me. … But I had an interest in Bryant for a long time.”

Bell and Auger are both great finishers.

“(Auger) has got that release and she’s a tall, thin kid, just a pure shooter,” said Pinkerton coach Rob Daziel, “and she’s strong on the draw.”

Midfielder Molly Anderson of Hamden Hall (Conn.) is also part of the incoming class for the Bulldogs.

9. UMass Lowell

New England recruits: 5
Inside Lacrosse top 40: 0

A regionally-flavored incoming class includes midfielder Hailey Peredna of nearby Pinkerton Academy (N.H.), a case study in perseverance.

Peredna overcame an ACL injury as a sophomore and shoulder problems to be a key player on a team that lost to Bishop Guertin by one goal in last spring’s state final.

“She’s just a very aggressive and a very solid middie because she plays really strong defense,” said Daziel.

Joining her in the class are midfielders Audrey Ehler of Hingham (Mass.), Emerson Laundry of Swampscott (Mass.) and Jaime Notarangelo of Foxboro (Mass.); and attack Kathryn Lindstrom of North Attleboro (Mass.).

10. Merrimack

New England recruits: 5
Inside Lacrosse top 40: 0

Merrimack’s move into Division 1 and the Northeast Conference this spring had its predictable growing pains, but coach Julie Duffy feels a foundation has been built despite a 1-6 record.

Five players from the region will have their chance to have a hand in the building, a group led by midfielders Krissy Kakridas of Weston (Mass.) and Sam Preston from Longmeadow (Mass.).

Two players from just over the border in Nashua, N.H., are part of the class — attack Kirsten McIntire from Nashua South and midfielder/defender Sophie O’Brien from Bishop Guertin

Versatile Lydia Tinnerello from Lyme/Old Lyme (Conn.) is the fifth member of the recruiting class from the region, who can play both on defense and on the attack.

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