January 27, 2004

BLACKSBURG, Va. - The Virginia Tech lacrosse team was picked to finish seventh in the BIG EAST according to the conference's pre-season poll released Tuesday afternoon. Senior Kate Threadgold was tabbed as a pre-season all-BIG EAST selection.

The Hokies return seven starters from last season and welcomed 12 talented newcomers this fall.

Threadgold, a senior from Largs Bay, Australia, was Tech's second-leading scorer last year. In 2003, she scored two or more goals in 10 games and is currently 11^th in the Hokies' record book for career goals with 55.

For the third consecutive year, Georgetown has been picked to win the BIG EAST women's lacrosse title by a vote of the league's head coaches. The Hoyas received six first-place votes.

Tech begins its inaugural season in the new Lacrosse Stadium on Sunday, March 7, when it host defending BIG EAST Champion Georgetown. The game is set for 1 p.m.

PRESEASON OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Leigh-Ann Zimmer, Syracuse, Sr., M
PRESEASON DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Michi Ellers, Georgetown, Sr., M

2004 LACROSSE PRESEASON POLL
			2003 RECORDS		2003 FINISH
School		Points	BIG EAST	Overall	Regular Season
1.	#*Georgetown (6)	36	6-0	13-4	1st
2.	Syracuse (1)	29	5-1	10-6	2nd
3.	Notre Dame	26	4-2	8-7	3rd
4.	Rutgers	20	3-3	12-4	4th
5.	Connecticut	16	1-5	8-8	6th
6.	Boston College	15	2-4	9-6	5th
7.	Virginia Tech	6	0-6	3-14	7th
First-place votes in parentheses
* - 2003 BIG EAST Champion
# - unanimous selection

PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAM
Christina Curiale, Rutgers, Sr., A
Michi Ellers, Georgetown, Sr., M*
Lyndsey Feldman, Rutgers, Jr., G*
Monica Joines, Syracuse, Jr., M*
Andrea Kinnik, Notre Dame, Sr., M/D
Gloria Lozano, Georgetown, Sr., M*
Tracy Mullaney, Connecticut, Jr., A*
Anouk Peters, Georgetown, Sr., A
Meredith Simon, Notre Dame, Sr., M/A
Kate Threadgold, Virginia Tech, Sr., A
Stephanie Walker, Syracuse, So., M
Jackie Yovankin, Boston Collge, Jr., M
Leigh-Ann Zimmer, Syracuse, Sr., M*

* - unanimous selection
a tie in the voting created an additional
position on the preseason team