Girls' Lax inks 4 to NLIs, Swimmer to Notre Dame

Cardinals saw (left to right) Kelly Mathews, Natalie Irwin, Charlotte Sofield, Kaitlin Luzik, and Ben Gorski sign NLI agreements.

On November 12, 2014, four senior Bishop Ireton HS girls lacrosse players signed their National Letter of Intent to play Division 1 college lacrosse next year. Last year, these four captains, led Bishop Ireton to championships in both the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) and the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) as well as a #1 ranking in the DC region by the Washington Post and a #5/6 national ranking by Laxpower and U.S. Lacrosse.

Natalie Irwin, a force on defense who led a Bishop Ireton squad which held all but two opponents to their lowest scoring total of the year, will play at the United States Naval Academy. In 2014, she was named U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, First Team All-State, and First Team All-WCAC.

Kaitlin Luzik, a two-time First Team U.S. Lacrosse All-American, has signed to play at the University of Virginia. As a junior, Kaitlin led the team in defensive statistics with 42 groundballs and 33 takeaways while also adding 27 goals and 22 assists on offense. In 2014, she was named First Team U.S. Lacrosse All-American, U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, First Team All-State, Second Team All-Met, and Second Team All-WCAC.

Kelly Mathews, Bishop Ireton’s leading goal-scorer last spring with 82 goals, has signed to play at Boston University. Mathews has amassed 191 goals in her first three years and is poised to shatter the Bishop Ireton record for goals in a career. In 2014, she was named First Team U.S. Lacrosse All-American, U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, First Team All-State, First Team All-WCAC, and Second Team All-Met.

Charlotte Sofield, ranked as one of the Top 10 recruits in the country by Inside Lacrosse magazine during each of the past two seasons, has signed to play at the University of North Carolina. The returning WCAC Player of the Year, Charlotte led Bishop Ireton in points last spring with 48 goals and 67 assists garnering numerous accolades, including UnderArmour Underclass All-American, First Team All-Met, First Team All-State, and First Team All-WCAC. She was a finalist for the Heather Leigh Albert Award which is presented to the nation’s most outstanding underclass lacrosse player.

Senior Ben Gorski, a four-year varsity swimmer, signed to swim for Notre Dame. The lanky Gorski holds the Bishop Ireton school record for the 100 yard breaststroke in a time of :56.17. The Falls Church resident is also one of the School’s top free style swimmer and an key member of a number of the Cardinals’ strongest relay teams.

“We are all very proud of these five exceptional athletes, who are also exceptional students and great young people. They have worked very hard to get to this point, but they have also distinguished themselves because they have made their teammates better as well.” commented athletic director, Bill Simmons. “That they are going to such great schools is a tribute how hard they work in the classroom as well as on the field and pool.”