The UMBC women’s lacrosse team kicked off their season on Feb. 13 against American University, playing through the bitter cold and winning in overtime 9-8. Since that first game, the Retrievers have practiced and competed in the freezing conditions of the Maryland winter, coming out the other side with their current record of 2-4. With spring now on the horizon and the America East Conference Tournament starting in less than a month, the Retrievers are looking to fine tune their 2019 team in order to have the best chance of making it to the playoffs.

The Retrievers went into this season ranked fifth by the annual America East Conference Coaches’ Preseason Poll, a poll where the coaches of the America East vote on the ranking of each team in the conference except for their own. This rank is down by two places from their 2018 ranking; the Retrievers were ranked third in going into the 2018 season. This year’s fifth-place ranking is due to, in part, the team being just shy of making it to the championships last year, finishing the conference tournament with a 3-4 record.

The ranking is also a result of the loss of several key players from that 2018 team. The Retrievers no longer have All-Conference honorees midfielder Carolyn Jamison, who has the third-most goals scored all-time, and midfielder Caitlin Miller, who holds the school record in most draw controls in a season. They did, however, return 15 letter winners, including two-time All-Conference honorees graduate-attacker Lauren McDonald and senior-attacker Payton Van Kirk. McDonald also holds the school record for most goals made during a season, scoring 62 goals in 2018.

With the loss of those seniors, the new players were asked to shoulder the weight the seniors had. The team has six new freshman and one new sophomore this season, each bringing their own sports honors and skill sets to the team. Freshman-attackers Kelsey Weishaar and Rachel Ridley are two of their biggest draws. Weishaar has started in six games for the Retrievers and has one goal and five assists, earning the team six points in total. Ridley is the only other freshman that has matched that number of points, playing in five of the six total games and getting six assists.

These new Retrievers, along with the rest of the team, are led by only two captains this season, senior-defender Jenna Baverman and senior-midfielder Catherin Sims, as opposed to the previous three years. Baverman is in her second year as a captain, having helped lead the 2018 team to their third appearance at the America East Tournament, a feat that has not happened since 2012.

Compared to that 2018 team, this year’s team lacks depth as it only holds 25 players as opposed to the 28 from a year ago. The Retrievers are comprised of mostly senior and sophomore players. The team will have eight players who graduate following this season. With so many seniors, the leadership on the team is far from lacking, McDonald and Van Kirk, as well as senior-defender Grayson Corbett can provide the freshman and sophomores with guidance on and off the field.

Even more guidance is given by head coach Amy Slade and assistant coaches Alex Benedict and Morgan Stephens, all three returning for the 2019 season. While Assistant coach Morgan Stephens is only in her third season with the Retrievers, each season she has been on staff the team has made it to the America East Tournament.

Between the star freshmen, the strong upperclassmen leadership and the good coaching staff, the Retrievers are looking for good performances against their conference opponents. Despite their current losing streak, the team is confident that they will finish better than their fifth-place ranking and that this will be their fourth time in a row heading to the America East Tournament.

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Ink & Pixels Portfolio Review  

Saturday, April 13th

Rose Malone is a Study Abroad Advisor in the Study Abroad Office at UMBC (newly located in Administration 301!). As an undergraduate student, Rose studied abroad in London, England and Skibbereen, Ireland. She sat down with us to discuss not only the steps involved with studying abroad, but also the impact the experience can have on a student’s life.

Break it down as easy as you can, what are the steps students need to take if they want to study abroad?

Simply put, if students plan to study abroad they should (in the following order): 
• Attend a Study Abroad 101 session 
• Determine which courses/requirements they still need to fulfill (this can be done through meeting with their academic advisor or a degree audit) 
• Pick out 1-5 study abroad programs from our website that offer the coursework they need 
• Schedule an appointment with a Study Abroad advisor 
• Meet with The Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships to discuss which scholarships, grants or loans can be applied 

What should students consider when trying to select a study abroad program?

Students should consider: 
• Coursework needs 
• If they want to become more proficient in a language (if so, study abroad where that language is spoken) 
• Do they want to live in a rural area, big city, college town, city campus, warm environment, colder environment? 
• Which type of housing they want (homestay, residence hall, apartment?) 
• What type of credit they can receive (resident or transfer) 
• Level of immersion (i.e.- how much separation do you want from your home culture?) 
• Internship or service learning, etc.

There are so many things to consider, which can seem daunting but there is something for everyone!

Is there an aspect of the study abroad planning process that many students, in retrospect, wish they had spent more time on/focused on?

This is a great question, but hard to answer across the board. I think one aspect that students should spend more time planning is the alignment of their language requirement and their study abroad experience. The best way to learn a language is through immersion, so if you study Spanish at UMBC because it would be useful in a future job, but study abroad in Germany and take one language course, you're probably not going to be proficient in either language. So if you want to put "proficient in Spanish" on your resume, you should probably study abroad somewhere Spanish-speaking! But students can study abroad anywhere they want!

Apart from some of the more well-known or "cliché" reasons to study abroad, why do you think students should make this part of their college experience?

I am not sure most students realize this but only 1 in 10 students nationally study abroad. This means that by studying abroad, you are setting yourself apart from all other graduates. When you walk into an interview for a job or apply for a graduate program, that study abroad experience is an immediate talking point. There are many examples from study abroad that you could use to "describe a time when you worked on a team" or "had to think on your feet.”

Are there any current UMBC study abroad programs you'd like to make a shameless plug for right now?

Yes! Our faculty-led programs for Summer 2019! They are open to all majors and many fulfill major, minor or GEP requirements! Most have a deadline of 2/15 except for our program in Cuba, which has a deadline of 1/31.

Make the most of your summer and apply today: https://goabroad.umbc.edu/index.cfm?FuseAction=Programs.FeaturedPrograms

If you yourself could study abroad right now, where would you go and why?

There are so many places I haven't been yet that this is a hard question! I think I would want to go somewhere in Asia! I think one of the most undervalued aspects of study abroad is the structure and support that comes along with it. When you go on a program, you have so much more support than if you were traveling as a tourist. I would love to have program support in Asia, somewhere that I don't speak any of the languages, so that I could feel supported and venture out on my own.

Any good stories from your own study abroad experience?

Too many to include here! I think one of the most rewarding moments of my first study abroad experience in London was when a tourist asked me for directions and I was able to give them. That is when I knew I was a "Londoner!" I didn't need to look up tube stop names or landmarks because I knew them!

FOR UMBC STUDENTS ONLY!!

It’s happening again!!! UMBC is traveling to Burlington, VT to take on the Vermont Catamounts in the America East Conference Men’s Basketball Championship!

Please review the options to decide how you’ll watch the Retrievers on Saturday!!

Want to lodge solo? Option 1 is for you!!

Option 1: This package provides a game ticket, transportation, and lodging for 1 student at a rate of $93.00 per person.

Want to lodge with friends, take a look at Options 2, 3, and 4!!!  All you need is one person to purchase and a few friends to pay you back via Venmo or CashApp!!

Option 2: This package provides a game ticket, transportation, and lodging for 2 at a rate of $46.50 per person. When you register and purchase your tickets, please be sure to submit the name and UMBC email address of your roommate.  We’ve done the math for you! The total cost of this package is $93.00, your roommate owes you $46.50!!

Option 3: This package provides a game ticket, transportation, and lodging for 3 at a rate of $31.00 per person. When you purchase your ticket, please be sure to submit the names and UMBC email addresses of your roommates. We’ve done the math for you! The total cost of this package is $93.00, each of your roommates owe you $31.00!!

Option 4: This package provides a game ticket, transportation, and lodging for 4 at a rate of $23.25 per person. When you purchase your ticket, please be sure to submit the names and UMBC email addresses of your roommates. We’ve done the math for you! The total cost of this package is $93.00, each of your roommates owe you $23.25!!

Roadtripping with friends and finding your own lodging? Just buy a ticket and sit with us!!!

Option 5: Game ticket only at $10.00 per person -- FOR UMBC STUDENTS ONLY.

PLEASE NOTE: Please be sure to make repayment arrangements amongst roommates before purchasing a package. Campus Life will not be responsible for payment arrangements amongst roommates.

IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL DETAILS: PLEASE READ!

1. Upon registration and ticket purchase, you will receive a confirmation email that will include an itinerary, instructions on how to retrieve your tickets, and other pertinent details.

2. If selecting to room with friends, please be sure to submit the names and UMBC email addresses of requested roommates.

3. The UMBC Fan Bus will be departing campus from The Stadium Lot at 9:00am on Friday, March 15, and returning around 11:30pm on Saturday, March 16.