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24 CAVALIER CORNER BY QUINN HULL E ffort, Attitude and Gratitude (E.A.G.) are guiding principles embed- ded within the Virginia women's lacrosse team. The values serve as the cornerstone of a historically great program that enters a new era striving to blend tradition with innovation. In times of transition, strong leadership on the field is crucial, and Virginia finds exactly that in fourth-year midfielder Mackenzie Hoeg. The Cavalier captain grew up on Long Island in Mattituck, N.Y. — an area of the country with no shortage of lacrosse his- tory and culture. The youngest of four, Hoeg learned and developed a love for the sport from her older siblings. Her oldest sister, Katie, was a standout player at North Carolina who set the career assist record for the Tar Heels to go along with four All-America selections. Her middle sister, Riley, also played at UVA. "I was definitely very lucky because when I was younger, I was just always at the field watching their games," Hoeg said. "I was able to play with Riley since she was only a year above me and I was just trying to take in as much as I could. I've always loved la- crosse, and I really just wanted to watch as much as possible. "It was really the perfect situation for me." A highly sought-after recruit herself, Hoeg was quickly faced with the decision of where she would play out her own collegiate career. "UVA has historically been such a good lacrosse school, but there's also just so many traditions that we have that I didn't even know about before coming to school," she said. "As a first-year you learn about all those traditions, and it has been awesome to be able to continue those for my four years, and hopefully they will be continued after. "Virginia has always had such a scrappy and strong team. I wanted to be a part of that when I was looking at schools." It was a perfect fit. Hoeg immediately became a starting midfielder as a first-year, scoring in each of her first six games as a Cavalier. She went on to put up 19 goals, 10 assists and 40 draw controls in her de- but season. Those numbers only improved as her career continued. In 2023, Hoeg engineered her best sta- tistical season to date. After being named co-captain, the third-year put up a career- high 40 goals while leading the team with 27 ground balls to go with 54 draw controls. Hoeg was honored as an IWLCA first-team all-region selection and a third-team All- American. Ahead of Hoeg's fourth-year season, Vir- ginia found itself in a transitional period with the departure of head coach Julie Myers. Soon to be inducted to the IWLCA Hall of Fame, Myers was in charge of the Virginia program for 28 seasons. Throughout her tenure, the Cavaliers enjoyed remarkable success, including a run of 27 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, six national runner-up finishes and an NCAA title in 2004. The appointment of the legendary coach as the CEO of the One Love Foundation marked the beginning of a period of change for Virginia. During this time, the Cavalier captains faced the task of leading the team until a new coach was selected. "Change can be scary," Hoeg said. "So, I think we [the captains] played a huge role in trying to make the team feel calm and take things day by day." In July 2023, Sonia LaMonica was announced as the fourth coach in the program's history. As an accomplished QUIET LEADER QUIET LEADER Mackenzie Hoeg Embodies The Effort, Attitude And Gratitude Of UVA Lacrosse " We really try to focus on what we can get better at every day. I think in the past we put a little too much emphasis on the opponents we faced, and this year we are really focused on us." HOEG