(JMU Athletics) – James Madison lacrosse was selected as the unanimous favorite in the 2025 American Athletic Conference Preseason Poll, and Maddie Epke was named the Preseason Attack Player of the Year, while Carolyn Thistlewaite grabbed Defensive Player of the Year, the conference announced on Tuesday. The pair was also two of six Dukes named to the Preseason All-Conference Team, including Ava Bleckley, Caitlin Boden, Maggie Clark, and Olivia Mattis.

Epke earns preseason honors after a stellar sophomore campaign in 2024, culminating in earning a spot on the Tewaaraton Award Watch List. Epke broke the single-season JMU record for draw controls, tallying 178 on the year, and added 57 goals and 23 assists in the attack. She made both First Team All-Conference and the All-Tournament Team in the AAC while adding an All-American Honorable Mention nod from both USA Lacrosse and ILWomen and First Team All-South Region from the IWLCA. Epke’s spot on the Preseason Team is the second in as many years.

Thistlewaite returns to the defensive side of the ball after sitting out the 2024 season due to injury. As a junior in 2023, she appeared in all 22 games with 21 starts, scooping 25 ground balls and causing 17 turnovers. The preseason laurel marks her first major award and appearance on the Preseason Team.

Bleckley, another defender, made her first appearance on the Preseason Team after grabbing AAC Freshman of the Year and First Team All-Conference following 2024. Starting in all 20 games, she posted a team-leading 31 caused turnovers and 37 ground balls, while winning 40 draw controls. She was fourth in the AAC in caused turnovers per game (1.55). Along with Epke, she also garnered an All-American Honorable Mention nod from ILWomen and First Team All-South Region from the IWLCA.

Boden leads active JMU goalies in cage minutes, and currently sits 18th in both all-time saves (164) and save percentage (.435) in JMU history. Her first nod to the Preseason Team follows a sophomore campaign in which she made 19 starts in 20 game appearances, with 157 saves and a .430 save percentage. She earned AAC Second Team All-Conference after last season.

Clark returns as a redshirt senior and one of two team captains for 2025, having started in 19 of 20 game appearances in the midfield in 2024. She registered 11 goals on 33 shots, along with seven assists, 21 ground balls, and 14 caused turnovers, while notching her first career hat trick against East Carolina on March 16th.

Mattis rounds out the Preseason Team, joining Epke as another Attacker. She registered 20 goals and three assists in 2024, having started all 20 games. Like Clark, she picked up her first career hat trick in 2024, against Johns Hopkins on March 30th, and a second against Old Dominion on April 27th.

The Dukes are picked as favorites for the second straight year, as they completed their 2024 campaign 6-1 in league play and reached the tournament championship game for the second straight year since joining the AAC in 2023. JMU’s 2025 campaign will begin on Feb. 7 as the Dukes take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in Chapel Hill at 5 p.m.

2025 American Athletic Conference Women’s Lacrosse Preseason Coaches’ Poll
Team Votes
James Madison (6) 36
Vanderbilt (1) 31
Temple 24
East Carolina 19
South Florida 18
Charlotte 11
Old Dominion 8
*First-place votes in parentheses

2025 American Athletic Conference Preseason Attack Player of the Year
Maddie Epke, James Madison *

2025 American Athletic Conference Preseason Midfielder of the Year
Kemper Robinson, Vanderbilt

2025 American Athletic Conference Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Carolyn Thistlewaite, James Madison *

2025 American Athletic Conference Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year
Taylor Grollman, Temple

2025 American Athletic Conference Women’s Lacrosse Preseason All-Conference Team
Lily Barger, D, Charlotte
Erin Gulden, A, East Carolina
Caroline Meininger, D, East Carolina
Emily Stratton, M, East Carolina
Carolyn Thistlewaite, D, James Madison
Ava Bleckley, D, James Madison *
Caitlin Boden, G, James Madison
Maggie Clark, M, James Madison
Maddie Epke, A, James Madison *
Olivia Mattis, A, James Madison
Sydney Taylor, A, Old Dominion
Sofia Chepenik, A, South Florida
Ansley Knor, D, South Florida
Taylor Grollman, G, Temple *
Amelia Wright, A, Temple
Brooke Baker, M, Vanderbilt *
Maddie Barkate, A, Vanderbilt
Molly Finlay, A, Vanderbilt
Alex Gladding, D, Vanderbilt
Kemper Robinson, M, Vanderbilt *

— JMU Athletics —