July 14, 2008

CHAPEL HILL -- The University of North Carolina women's lacrosse team has signed eight student-athletes to National Letters of Intent and added a recruited walkon for the 2009 season, head coach Jenny Levy announced on Monday. The group will enroll at Carolina and join the women's lacrosse program this fall.

The group includes two signees apiece from Maryland and New York, as well as student-athletes from Connecticut, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The signees are Lauren Cosentino (Cary, N.C.), Beth Ellis (Radnor, Pa.), Britt Giacco (Avon, Conn.), Mary Lacey Gilbride (Alexandria, Va.), Lucy Hayes (Bethesda, Md.), Becky Lynch (Garden City, N.Y.), Kira Paterakis (Stevenson, Md.) and Laura Zimmerman (Syracuse, N.Y.).

"We are really excited about our class or 2008," Levy says. "We feel that they will be a great complement to our returning group. First and foremost, they all are great students, are very talented lacrosse players and passionate about joining the Carolina family. They all compete for high school teams that are top in their area and two players, Beth Ellis and Becky Lynch, led their High School teams to state titles."

"This class has a lot of height, athleticism and quickness," continues Levy. "We know they are committed to working hard to continue the traditions of success at Carolina. Right now we are excited about the potential they bring and look forward to developing them into top-level college players."

Gilbride and Hayes both were named 2008 Under Armour All-Americas and took part in the Under Armour All-America Lacrosse Game this past weekend in Baltimore.

Cosentino is UNC's first signee from the state of North Carolina, earning all-conference honors three times and all-state accolades at Green Hope High School in Cary. A three-sport standout who earned varsity letters in golf, lacrosse and cross country, Cosentino was a three-time team captain on the lacrosse field and a four-year member of the academic honor roll.

Ellis was a first-team US Lacrosse All-America and team captain as a senior at Radnor HS in 2008, helping Radnor to a 23-0, state championship season. A native of Bryn Mawr, Pa., Ellis was named Radnor's team MVP in 2008 and was named Co-Player of the Year by PhillyLacrosse.com. Also a decorated soccer and basketball player, Ellis was a starter and leader for all three squads, earning all-league honors in all three sports. Ellis also was an honor roll student at Radnor.

Giacco played lacrosse, field hockey and ice hockey at the Loomis Chaffee School in Connecticut, earning All-America honors in lacrosse while leading the school to championships in the Founders League and Western New England. An honor roll student, Giacco won two gold medals in the national Latin exam. She also is a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and plays trumpet in the school band.

Gilbride took part in the 2008 Under Armour All-America Game in Baltimore this month after earning four lacrosse varsity letters at the Georgetown Visitation Prep School. She was the Washington Post Extra Edition Player of the Year for the District of Columbia in 2007 and 2008 and a first-team All-Metro choice in 2008 while also earning team MVP honors as a senior. She earned US Lacrosse Honorable Mention All-America honors as a sophomore before earning first-team honors as a junior. Gilbride was also the team MVP at Georgetown Visitation in basketball as a sophomore, an officer in the school's Athletic Association and an assistant coach in the Fort Hunt Youth Lacrosse Program.

Hayes, a Bethesda, Md., native, was a three-sport standout in lacrosse, field hockey and ice hockey at the Holton-Arms School, earning Under Armour All-America honors in lacrosse. She was a Second-Team All-Metro choice by the Washington Post and the MVP of her team in 2007.

Lynch was a decorated star in lacrosse, soccer and basketball at Garden City HS in Garden City, N.Y., leading the school to four consecutive Nassau County and Long Island championships and back-to-back-to-back New York state titles in 2006-07-08. She was a gold medalist with the Long Island Empire Girls Lacrosse Team in 2008, earning All Galaxy first-team honors in `07. Lynch was an honorable mention All-America in 2007 while earning MVP honors in the New York state championship game and was named a US Lacrosse first-team All-America, All-Long Island and all-county selection in 2008. On the soccer field, Lynch earned all-class and all-conference honors. On the basketball court, she garnered all-division and all-conference accolades while twice being named MVP of the Bethpage Tournament. She was named her team's most outstanding player for 2007-08. She won the Garden City HS Outstanding Female Athlete Award and the Donna Walsh Lacrosse Award in 2008.

Paterakis, a native of Stevenson, Md., was a four-sport standout in lacrosse, soccer, basketball and equestrian at the McDonogh School. While at McDonogh, she won the school Equestrian Award and the basketball team's Unsung Hero Award while leading the lacrosse team in ground balls. She also helped lead her club lacrosse team to championships in two national tournaments and served as a volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House.

Zimmerman earned first-team all-conference honors at Westhill HS in Syracuse, N.Y., while also winning a bronze medal as the captain of the Empire State Central Girls' Lacrosse Team. She also was a decorated soccer player and a decorated runner on the track team who participated in the 55-, 1000- and 1500- meter events. Zimmerman is a member of the National Honor Society and was an academic All-America as a junior.

"We continue to recruit players from many different areas of the country," says Levy. "This class comes from Washington DC, Philadelphia, Long Island, Upstate New York, Connecticut and Maryland. It is also great to welcome two players from the state of North Carolina, Lauren Cosentino and Laura Escobar, who were members of our high school club team, Carolina Fever. Our program has worked hard to encourage the growth of lacrosse in the state of North Carolina. It's rewarding to see the hard work pay off and have local players on our roster."

In addition to the eight National Letter of Intent signees, freshman and Raleigh native Laura Escobar of Broughton HS will be a walk-on member of the Tar Heel team beginning in the fall.