The Washington and Lee women’s lacrosse team shook off a rough start and recorded its first win of 2016 on March 9.

The Gennies opened the season on a four game losing streak, including two close calls against Mary Washington and St. Mary’s of Maryland, but snapped that streak by topping Haverford College 13-10.

Despite the rocky start, the Generals are optimistic about the rest of their season and plan on seeing more W’s in the win column in the near future.

The Generals began the season with a tough nonconference schedule and they hope the experience will lead to success later on in the season.

“We’ve played some really tough, top Division III teams so far in our season and haven’t managed to get a win,” Abigail Summerville, ‘19.

However, the Generals have had a few shining moments this season including their 5-1 loss to Franklin and Marshall.

“Against Franklin and Marshall the team played really well. We held them to two goals at halftime which is just unheard of compared to other games and they only scored 3 goals in the second half. Defense crushed it,” Maggie Waxter, ‘17.

Olivia Sisson, ‘17, also came out positive on the Generals’ game against Franklin and Marshall.

“We played well against F&M, which is the number three Division III team in the country, so we know we can compete with the best if everyone shows up to compete,” Sisson said.

The team is working hard at practice to put the pieces together, and is hoping to see results on the field come gameday.

“We are working on doing better with the little things at practice and giving 100% during lifts, workouts, and practice, and focusing in the locker room. We are trying to push each other so that games feel easier, and we know that if everyone gives 100% every day, we will start to see results,” Sisson said.

The women’s lacrosse team is fielding a very young team this year. The team fields 11 first-years, many of whom are starters. As a result, the team is continuing to focus on meshing as a group on the field.

“We now have a better understanding of each other’s strengths and weaknesses which allows us to work better as a unit on the attacking and defensive ends and on transitions in the midfield,” Summerville said.

The defense has been strong through the first five games of the season, but the attack continues to work on getting more shots on goal off.

“Right now we are working a lot on making the attack click better. We are trying to figure out what people are best at and capitalize on that,” Waxter said.

With each passing game, the team is becoming more and more optimistic about the rest of the season.

“Our season is really front-loaded,” Sisson said. “But we’ve definitely been taking the necessary steps to succeed against anyone; we’re trying to hold each other more accountable for the goals we agreed upon at the beginning of the season.”

With one win on the board, the Gennies are ready to make a statement come ODAC play and compete for a seventh consecutive ODAC trophy.

“We fought harder [against Haverford] than the other team and that’s what made the difference,” Summerville said.

The Generals will look to build off of that win when they host Catholic on March 19.