Stephen Slezak, Campus Carrier asst. sports editor
The 2025 lacrosse season has officially kicked off for both the men’s and women’s teams. Each team returns key players with the chance to make a run at the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) championship. Last year, the men finished third in the conference, losing in the Conference semifinals to Sewanee. The men have been picked to finish fourth in the SAA preseason poll. The women also finished third in the conference last year, losing to Centre in the SAA semifinals and finishing with a 12-5 record overall. The women are tied for third in the SAA pre-season poll.
Curtis Gilbert is heading into his 12th season as the head coach of the men’s lacrosse team. Gilbert has a record of 90-65 overall, with a SAA record of 37-21. He has won one regular season title during his tenure and was named the SAA coach of the year in 2018. Gilbert has also coached 64 All-SAA selections, two SAA offensive players of the year, one SAA defensive player of the year and two All-Americans.
Heading into this season, Gilbert has high goals for the team on and off the field.
“Our goals each year are to win the alumni game and the SAA Conference Championship for an NCAA playoff spot,” Gilbert said. “This year, we also aim for a team GPA of 3.3 or higher.”
The pre-season has been a positive one so far for the Vikings, but also a learning point for the team as they prepare for the season.
“So far this pre-season, I’ve seen an intense focus to do the small things right,” Gilbert said. “But I have also seen plenty of sloppy stickwork due to frozen hands. Pre-season Lacrosse is all about Legs, Lungs, Head and Sticks.
Two players that are returning contributors for the Vikings are seniors Tim Salisbury and Ethan Perlakowski. Both players were second team All-SAA for the Vikings last year. Gilbert is excited for the roles these two seniors will have on the rest of the team.
“These guys have been important players throughout their careers, but I can’t believe only those two received All-SAA,” Gilbert said. “They are just the tip of the iceberg. Some younger players are equally talented but overlooked, and we prefer it that way. It takes a whole team to score and defend in lacrosse.”
The men’s season starts Feb. 8 at Piedmont University with the home opener on Feb. 11 against Shorter University. Conference play starts March 22 at Centre College, with the conference home opener the following week March 28 against Rhodes College.
The women’s season is also met with optimism and high expectations for the upcoming season. Brittni Hall is coming into her eighth season as head coach of the Vikings. Hall has coached the Vikings to their first ever SAA finals appearance and has led many players to All-SAA selections and multiple All-Region selections.
The Vikings are headlined by three voted on captains by the team, which include senior attacker Molley Cross, senior attack midfielder Maddie Mashburn and junior midfielder Dani Taraska. Multiple returning players have also been recognized by the SAA for their on field contributions to the team last year, including first team All-SAA Dani Taraska, second team All-SAA Katie Claire Smith, and SAA honorable mention Molley Cross.
Senior Maddie Mashburn feels the team is returning quality talent and has brought in impactful freshmen to help this team reach their expectations.
“We have an amazing freshmen class that is already filling rolls in on defense, offense, and taking the draw,” Mashburn said. “Our upperclassmen are also stepping into roles that they have been practicing for and waiting on their moment on the field.”
Senior Madison Drouillard has outlined the goals and objectives the team is taking into this season.
“Our goal always is to win a conference championship and each year we move closer to that goal,” Drouillard said. “This year I think we have really prioritized relationships and having fun and caring for each other in everything we do.”
The expectations for every athletic team at Berry are to compete for the SAA championship and make the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) tournament.
“Each year we are shooting to get back to the conference championship, as we fell short last year,” Mashburn said. “This senior class is excited for another chance to fight for a ring and take it even further to our first visit to the NCAA tournament.”
The schedule for the women Vikings is unique to many other athletic teams that participate at Berry. The team travels over 4,400 miles over the course of the season with games in Ohio, Texas, Oregon and Tennessee. The season kicks off for the women’s team Feb. 8 at home against Methodist University. Conference games start March 29 at home against Hendrix College.