DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (July 23, 2025) – For the 10th year, Mercy University Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top-10 most memorable moments of the 2024-25 season, with all 10 sports represented.
Mercy University Athletics will release a Top-10 moment, as chosen by the athletics staff, with a recap every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next three weeks culminating with the top moment from the 2024-25 athletic year being unveiled on Friday, August 1st.
No. 5 – Women's Lacrosse Advances to ECC Championship Final
Coming in at No. 5 in our 2024-25 Top-10 Moments is women's lacrosse who advanced to the ECC Championship Final.
Mercy entered the 2025 season picked second in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 9-10 last season. Senior Lindsey Shimborske was named ECC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and USA Lacrosse Magazine Preseason First Team All-American.
The Mavericks opened the season receiving votes nationally in the IWLCA Top 25 Poll. Head Coach Dawn Sachs and Mercy began the 2025 season on February 19th with a convincing 15-3 win over Georgian Court at Mercy Field. Senior Leah Hansen had a game-high seven points and Shimborske had a game-high five caused turnovers and eight draw controls as Mercy won their season opener for the 12th time in 13 seasons. Freshman Ashlinn Kelly scored three goals in her collegiate debut. Junior Emily Marino added four caused turnovers with four ground balls. After the game, Shimborske was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week, Kelly was named Rookie of the Week and Hansen, and sophomore Riley Wallace were tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Mercy made it two wins in a row on February 26th when they earned an 11-10 win at No. 16 New Haven. Seven different Mavericks scored, and junior Olivia LaMonica made a game-high nine saves as Mercy moved to 2-0 for the first time since 2021. Junior Maeghan Callow and Hansen both had a team-high-tying three goals in the win.
Sachs and the Mavericks began the month of March with a hard-fought 13-12 loss to eventual National Runner-Up No. 6 Adelphi on March 1st. Shimborske had a career-high 17 draw controls, LaMonica made 11 saves and Wallace and freshmen Kayden Meyer and Marena Morales each had a team-high three goals. The one-goal loss to Adelphi was the smallest margin of defeat to Adelphi in six all-time meetings. Shimborske recorded her 300th career draw control, becoming the second Maverick in program history to reach the mark.
Following the pair of games, Mercy entered the Top 25 nationally at No. 23 in the IWLCA Poll. Shimborske was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week for the second time and Wallace, Kelly, Meyer and Morales were tabbed to the Honor Roll. Shimborske was also named IWLCA Division II Defensive Player of the Week.
Mercy got back to their winning ways on March 5th when they earned an impressive 15-4 win over No. 24 Assumption at Mercy Field. Hansen scored a game-high four goals and LaMonica made 10 saves as Mercy moved to 3-1 on the year. The 11-goal margin of victory was the largest for the Mavericks over Assumption. The Mavericks ended the week, dropping a narrow 14-13 decision at No. 18 Bentley on March 8th. Hansen had a team-high five points on three goals and two assists.
The Mavericks remained ranked at No. 23 nationally in the IWLCA Poll. Kelly was named ECC Rookie of the Week for the second time and Hansen and Wallace were tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Mercy resumed action in Florida on March 17th when they played at eventual National Champion No. 1 Tampa. Meyer scored a team-high two goals as the Mavericks dropped their second straight game. The Mavericks concluded their Florida trip with a close 12-8 loss to No. 2 Florida Southern on March 19th. Hansen, Callow, and Wallace all scored a team-high two goals.
Despite the two losses, Mercy remained nationally ranked at No. 23. Shimborske was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week for the third time on March 24th. The Mavericks snapped their three-game losing streak with a 13-11 win at Jefferson on March 26th. Kelly had four goals and five points and LaMonica made 11 saves as Mercy improved to 4-4 on the season.
The Mavericks opened ECC play and celebrated Senior Day on March 29th with a 21-6 win over Daemen. In a ceremony prior to the game, Hansen, Shimborske and Tatiana Moran were recognized for their contributions to the program. Hansen and Meyer both had a game-high six points and junior Rita-Marie Masi had a game-high three caused turnovers with three ground balls. Mercy moved to 5-4 on the year and won their ECC opener for the eighth straight season.
Mercy remained ranked at No. 23 nationally and Kelly was named ECC Rookie of the Week for the third time on March 31st. Shimborske, LaMonica, and Meyer were tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Sachs and the Mavericks began the month of April with a 19-18 overtime loss at Molloy on April 5th. Wallace had a career-high and game-high nine points on a career-high seven goals with two assists. Kelly added four goals and two assists and LaMonica made a game-high 14 saves.
Mercy was ranked No. 25 nationally on April 7th and Shimborske, Wallace, and Kelly were named to the ECC Honor Roll. The Mavericks resumed play on April 9th and got back in the win column with a 20-2 win over St. Thomas Aquinas at Mercy Field. Nine Mavericks recorded a point, and seven Mavericks recorded a caused turnover as Mercy moved to 6-5 overall and 2-1 in ECC play. Hansen recorded her 150th career goal, becoming the third Maverick to reach the mark.
The Mavericks capped off the week with a 21-6 win at D'Youville on April 13th. Hansen had a career-high-tying nine points on a game-high six goals and three assists. Kelly and Meyer both scored four goals. Callow recorded her 100th career draw control, becoming the eighth Maverick to reach the mark.
Sachs and the Mavericks were ranked No. 25 nationally again on April 14th. Hansen was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week, Kelly was tabbed Rookie of the Week and Wallace and Meyer were tabbed to the Honor Roll. Mercy was also under consideration for a spot in the NCAA Tournament in the first regional rankings released on April 16th. Kelly had a game-high-tying five goals, but the Mavericks dropped a 16-12 decision at No. 9 Pace on April 16th, falling to 7-6 on the year. Hansen recorded her 200th career point, becoming the fifth Maverick to reach the mark. Shimborske produced two caused turnovers and four ground balls, recording her 200th career ground ball, becoming the second Maverick in program history to reach the mark. Shimborske also set a new school record with her 167th career caused turnover, surpassing the previous record of 166 set by Micayla Brady in 2023.
Mercy finished off the week with a 23-2 win over the District of Columbia on April 19th. Eight different Mavericks recorded a point, led by Hansen who had a game-high-tying nine points on seven goals and two assists. Sophomore Juliana Talenti added a career-high nine points on two goals and a career-high seven assists.
The Mavericks sat at No. 25 nationally on April 21st. Kelly was named ECC Offensive Player and Rookie of the Week, Shimborske was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week and Meyer was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Mercy also was ranked No. 7 in the NCAA East Regional Rankings.
Sachs and the Mavericks ended the regular season on April 27th with a 10-8 win over Roberts Wesleyan on First Responders Day. LaMonica made a career-high 14 saves and Kelly had a game-high three goals and four caused turnovers as Mercy moved to 9-6 overall and 5-1 in ECC play. LaMonica recorded her 200th career save, becoming the fifth Maverick to reach the mark. The Mavericks earned a share of the ECC Regular Season Championship for the fifth time in program history. Mercy secured the No. 1 seed in the following week's ECC Championship and would host No. 4 seed Daemen in a Semifinal matchup on April 30th.
Mercy ended the regular season ranked No. 25 nationally. LaMonica was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week and Shimborske and Kelly were tabbed to the Honor Roll. LaMonica was also named IWLCA Division II Defensive Player of the Week.
On April 30th, the Mavericks cruised to a 21-2 win over Daemen in the ECC Semifinals. Meyer had a game-high six points on five goals and one assist and Wallace had four goals and an assist. Mercy extended their winning streak to three games and advanced to the Final for the eighth straight season. The Mavericks would host Molloy in the Final on May 3rd.
The ECC All-Conference teams came out on May 1st, and the Mavericks were well represented. Shimborske was named Defender of the Year for the third straight year, Kelly was named Rookie of the Year and Sachs was named Coach of the Year for the fifth time. Shimborske, Kelly, Hansen, Marino and Wallace were named First Team All-ECC and Callow, LaMonica and Meyer were tabbed Second Team All-ECC.
The Mavericks dropped a 15-13 decision to No. 3 seed Molloy in the ECC Championship Final on May 3rd, ending their season at 10-7. Hansen had a team-high four points on three goals and one assist and Shimborske had five draw controls, one caused turnover and two ground balls.
After the season, Shimborske was named IWLCA First Team All-Region and Hansen and Kelly were tabbed Second Team All-Region. Shimborske had a team-high 62 ground balls, 120 draw controls, and 39 caused turnovers. Hansen had a team-high 53 goals, 20 assists and 73 points and Kelly had 48 goals, 17 assists, 65 points, 29 caused turnovers, 23 ground balls, and 15 draw controls.
Shimborske was also named IWLCA and USA Lacrosse Magazine First Team All-American, earning All-American honors from both organizations for the third straight year. Shimborske and Hansen also played in the IWLCA Division II Senior All-Star Game. Shimborske ended her career with 219 ground balls, 392 draw controls and 175 caused turnovers in 72 games. Shimborske ranks second in program history in ground balls and draw controls. Hansen ended her career with 173 goals, 49 assists, 222 points and 47 ground balls in 74 games. Hansen is third in program history in goals and points and ninth in assists.
The team also excelled in the classroom with Shimborske, Hansen, LaMonica and Wallace being named to the College Sports Communicators At-Large Academic All-District Team and Shimborske was named First Team Academic All-American. Shimborske was also named the ECC Women's Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the team posted a 3.71 GPA throughout the 2024-25 academic year. The Mavericks earned the ECC Academic Team of Excellence Award.
Schedule for the Top-10 Moments of the 2024-25 Season
Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, the Mercy University Athletic Department will release the Top-10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Friday, July 11th. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Friday, August 1st.
No. 1 – August 1st
No. 2 – July 30th
No. 3 – July 28th
No. 4 – July 25th
No. 5 – July 23rd
No. 6 – Men's Soccer Advances to ECC Championship Semifinal and is Nationally-Ranked Throughout Season
No. 7 – Softball Records Most Wins Since 2019 and Wins First ECC Championship Game Since 2021
No. 8 - Women's Soccer Qualifies for ECC Championship for 11th Straight Season and Advances to Semifinals
No. 9 – Men's Basketball Records Most Wins Since 2019 and Nearly Qualifies for ECC Championship
No. 10 – Field Hockey Gets Off to Best Start in Program History and Nearly Qualifies for NE10 Championship
