HAVERFORD, Pa. -- The Bates women's lacrosse team sets sail Wednesday on their inaugural season under new head coach Princess Zabel, who joined the Bobcats in late January. Bates starts the season this week on the road with games against Haverford College and Catholic University. 

"They're incredible women, not just lacrosse players," Zabel said. "I've been meeting with every single one of them and having them tell me who they are as people, then we get into lacrosse stuff. They have goals and objectives, and they're proving to themselves and to each other that the goals are attainable."

The Bobcats return four of their five leading point scorers from a year ago -- paced by now sophomore Laci Raveis (Fairfield, Conn.) -- who as a rookie led the team in points with 31. She scored 24 goals and dished out seven assists in an impressive debut season. Joining Raveis on a potent offensive attack is junior Lauren Wong (Walpole, Mass.), who tallied 23 goals last season and matched Raveis for the team-lead with seven assists. Senior captain Caroline Taggart (Concord, Mass.) and junior Caroline Keating (Rye, N.Y.) weren't far behind in the goal-scoring column, recording 17 goals apiece and dishing out a combined 10 assists, six for Taggart and four for Keating. Keating was also a big contributor after goals were scored, tallying a team-high 43 draw controls a year ago.

Bates also returns some experienced players on defense, with seniors Olivia Hall (Boston), Emily Mueller (Alexandria, Va.), and Olivia Joaquin (Washington, D.C.) anchoring a group that saw a lot of minutes last year. Hall caused nine turnovers and Mueller finished with 17 ground balls.

Bates finished last season on a high note when the Bobcats defeated No. 10 nationally ranked Colby by a score of 9-8, their first win over a top-10 opponent since 2019. Goalkeeper Raegan White '26 (Duxbury, Mass.) started that game and turned in the performance of her career to date, tallying eight saves for a save percentage of .500, while also recording seven ground balls.

"They are taking that momentum from the Colby win, and they are rolling into this season," Zabel said. "That excitement is still there. They see it as a starting point and I think that game is a testament to this team's culture. That was the last game of the season, and they could have packed it in but they went out there and they fought hard for 60 minutes, and came up with the win." 

Zabel is excited for a road trip to start the season, as she sees it as a chance to form strong bonds within the team. The Bobcats play four road games before their home opener on Saturday, March 8 against Williams.

"Traveling and competing is not easy," Zabel said. "It has its own challenges, so I think it's important that we're actually getting on a plane and going down to Philadelphia. Then, we're going to bus to D.C., and we'll come back and get on the road for a long haul to Hamilton. So, by the time we get to Hamilton, we will have learned how to travel with this group and what the group needs, and it's really exciting."