Hi! My name is Meg Taylor, and I am a senior attacker for the Loyola Greyhounds. My twin sister, Mary Clare and I will be updating you on our season each week this season.
We are from Ellicott City, Maryland, just outside Baltimore in Howard County, where we grew up playing lacrosse. Loyola seemed like the perfect school for both of us, a challenging place that is rich in lacrosse tradition.

I live just off campus in an apartment with MC and my other teammate, Colleen O'Keefe. All of the seniors on our team live in the same apartment community, and the rest of the girls live on campus around the corner. If you are ever looking for a teammate to hang out with, you can most likely find girls in our locker room from the hours of 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.. The "Bravo" network is always on the TV and most conversations revolve around who is going to win "The Bachelor".

This year has been a different experience for our team because we have new coaches. The transition since September has been very smooth and comfortable for everyone. We are starting a new chapter in Loyola's history, and it is definitely cool to be a part of. I am really excited to show the lacrosse world what Loyola is made of.

We started our week with a scrimmage against Scotland on Sunday. I love playing international teams because of the different styles of play we see. It forces our team to adjust which always teaches you something. We were tied at half time, and came out to play a strong second half. It was a good feeling knowing we can bounce back after a half that we were not pleased with. After the game our parents put on a great tailgate for both teams where we got a chance to meet and talk to the girls from Scotland. It was a lot of fun!

We just got back from our first road trip and season opener against Stony Brook. It was a success, winning 15-7. It was such a good feeling to put on a Loyola jersey and get out on the field for an official game after 9 months! Colleen made her debut back on the field after getting her ACL repaired last spring. You could feel her presence on the  field and it was good to have her back! Grace Gavin really set the tone for the game, scoring 5 goals in the first half! She played awesome and got the rest of the team going. Her energy on the field is contagious.

We have our home opener against UVA on Saturday. I am excited to get out on our home turf! We have never played Virginia while I have been here, so it will be cool to face a new opponent. I'm looking forward to practice tomorrow when we can go over the Stony Brook game and look forward to our match up with UVA!

Thanks for reading. Go Hounds!

My name is Mary Clare and I'm a senior on the Loyola Women's Lacrosse team.  I am an amateur at blogging - never done it before - but am excited to share my thoughts with you as the lacrosse season plays out.  I am sad to say that this is the last season I will get to put on the #12 jersey that hangs in my locker today.

Soon I will be out in the "real world", wishing I could turn back time and start my college years all over again.  It feels like just yesterday that I was getting lost on what could be the smallest campus ever and wearing my practice gear to the classes I actually found (I really did wear my full green sweat suit to class a few times).

Even though I wish I could go back to these days so I could have three more great years at Loyola ahead of me, I am living in the moment and enjoying the days that I have left here.  I have had so many great experiences while being a part of this team and would not trade it for anything.  Our team is looking forward to a new chapter in the history of Loyola women's lacrosse and can't wait to prove to ourselves what we are really made of.

We just got back to Baltimore from our season opener against Stony Brook and it was a great way to start the season... 1-0!  It was probably one of the toughest games I've ever played in because of the weather conditions.  It was freezing cold, rainy/snowy, and windy but both teams played through it until the last second.

We did some awesome things out on the field and generated a lot of opportunities for each other.  Ana Heneberry was an animal on defense, causing Stony Brook to turn the ball over six times and picking up groundballs like a vacuum.  No one could get past her - and it was the first collegiate game she's every played in.  Knowing that we have freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors who can get the job done is an awesome feeling.

Although we won, we also made a lot of mistakes and have specific things that we still need to work hard on.  There is always room for improvement and an opportunity to take our game to the next level.  We do not want to settle for anything but our best, so in practice tomorrow we plan to do the work in order to get better than we were yesterday and today.  I have faith in my team mates and coaches, and know that we will continue to get better everyday and continue in the right direction.  I'm so excited for our home opener on Diane Geppi-Aikens Field (Saturday, February 21 at 3:30 p.m.) against UVA!!!  It is another great opportunity to prove who we are as the 2009 Loyola Greyhounds.

GO HOUNDS!

-MC