University of Richmond Athletics
Polly Purcell Tops Career Assist Mark
04/07/2004 | Women's Lacrosse
April 7, 2004
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - With two assists in last Friday's game at George Washington, University of Richmond senior Polly Purcell became the program's all-time assist leader, an impressive feat considering this is just her third season in a Spider uniform.
The Ellicott City, Md. native surpassed the previous high of 62 assists, set by Heather Gardener (1993-96), in just 44 contests. She also holds the top two spots for single-season assists after recording 30 as a sophomore and 24 last year.
"I am extremely excited for Polly as she has set a higher standard of performance, work ethic and dedication to this program. This is the kind of player that does the extra work," head coach Sue Murphy commented. "She loves the game so much that she puts additional time into film review, shooting and working out to continue to improve upon her performance. She has been a great role model for the younger players with her desire to build this program and her dedication to a higher level of play."
After a standout freshman year at Boston University under then-head coach Sue Murphy, the America East Conference Rookie of the Year followed Murphy south to Richmond and immediately made her presence known.
"What is so great about this accomplishment is that Polly has only been at Richmond for three seasons," Murphy stated. "Imagine what could have been done in all the statistic columns if she had the fourth season here."
A two-time All-Atlantic 10 selection, Purcell has led the team in both goals and assists the past two seasons and has ranked among the best in the nation. In 2002, she finished 12th in the county in assists per game and last season ended the year at 10th in points per game.
The Spiders are back in action this weekend, hosting Massachusetts on Friday at 3:00 p.m. and #4 Duke on Sunday at 2:00 p.m.
