University of Richmond, Va. - Senior attack Mandy Friend and incoming freshman Caitlin Fifield were both selected as members of the 2009 Canadian Women's Field Lacrosse Team roster. At the most recent World Cup, held in Annapolis, Md. in 2005, Canada placed fourth. Canada has finished as high as third in the history of the event.

As a four-year starter for Richmond, Friend has built a decorated resume. In 2008, she started every game for Spiders, while netting 53 goals and dishing 36 assists and earning a season-best 89 points. Friend was selected to the IWLCA All-South Regional Second Team, and was named the Atlantic-10 Player of the Week twice.

As for Fifield, she enters Richmond with numerous accolades. Fifield, an attack/midfielder from North Babylon, N.Y., was a member of the 2008 US Lacrosse All-American first team, as well as a 2007 US Lacrosse All-American honorable mention.

Fifield says she is excited about the new experience. "I think having two Richmond players on Team Canada is awesome, and hopefully we will bring new ideas to our Richmond team." The final team will be selected next February, where they will compete with the 2009 FIL World Cup (Federation of International Lacrosse) in Prague, Czech Republic, June 18-27.

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University of Richmond, Va. - The University of Richmond lacrosse team has been named among the top 50 schools in the nation in team GPA according to the IWLCA. The IWLCA ranks teams annually, who have a collective team GPA of 3.0 or higher.

"We are extremely proud of the team for this accomplishment," Head coach Sue Murphy said. "They prioritize their academics and they deserve this outstanding acknowledgment. Our team GPA continues to improve, a credit to the student-athletes and the support system in place at the University of Richmond.

Other Atlantic-10 schools receiving this honor included George Washington, La Salle, and Duquesne.

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University of Richmond, Va. - The University of Richmond women's lacrosse team spent some time off the field last month to take on some obstacles up in the air at the Challenge Discovery Ropes Course on campus. The program - Team Odyssey - is offered by the University's Recreation and Wellness Center and focuses on team-building exercises and bringing out characteristics that reinforce strong relationships.

"We felt very fortunate as a team to take part in a team bonding event on our campus," said Head Coach Sue Murphy. "The Challenge Discovery Ropes Course was a wonderful opportunity for individuals to show different personality skills while working in a team setting."

The course offers a variety of team challenges that take place 20 to 35 feet in the air. Teamwork is paramount to the completion each challenge and the players recognized the importance of working together to achieve a common goal.

"The ropes course was an unforgettable experience that pushed my teammates and myself to physical and mental challenges most of us had never seen before," said sophomore Anne Ryan."I truly realized how strong of a force a unit could become when you come together towards a common goal. We had a great time while learning a lot about each other and ourselves."

Added senior Mandy Friend, "Working together in such a vulnerable setting brought out sides of myself and my teammates that we would've never found otherwise."

Murphy is hoping that these characteristics will carry over to the playing field as the Spiders look to reclaim the Atlantic 10 title this spring.

"I personally witnessed particular players find an opportunity to lead in a different way then on the lacrosse field," she said. "I was most impressed with the team and how they took care of each other."

2008-11-19