Rawlick is one of 21 holdovers from Navy's club program, which went 18-5 and was runner-up in the US Lacrosse/Women's Division Intercollegiate Associates national tournament.

"We took the mindset that this is a Division I program now and it will take more dedication and commitment to be successful," Rawlick said. "Fortunately, we have a phenomenal coaching staff that has shown us what it takes and done so much to help us improve."

Navy made an impressive debut in the Patriot League, placing fourth out of seven schools with a 4-2 record. The Midshipmen hope to continue their magical campaign by capturing the Patriot League Tournament, being held tomorrow and Sunday at American University. Winner advances to an NCAA Tournament play-in game against the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion.

"I think this team is still hungry to make a statement, to prove how tough we can be," Navy head coach Cindy Timchal said. "We're playing solid lacrosse right now. What I want more than anything is for the players to put it all out there and play as well as possible."

Navy meets top-seeded American in tomorrow's opening semifinal while second-seeded Colgate faces No. 3 Lehigh in the nightcap. Navy nipped American 13-12 during the regular season, but was beaten 19-10 by Colgate and 15-12 by Lehigh.

"We are pumped and ready to go. All four teams are capable so it's going to be a matter of which shows up the strongest," Rawlick said. "We know it will take two tough wins, but we are going in confident."

Rawlick played soccer and lacrosse at C. Milton Wright in Harford County and was a member of Class 3A state championship squads in both sports. While she grew up playing high-level club soccer, the daughter of a career Army officer did not pick up a lacrosse stick until moving to Forest Hill.

"I didn't know anything about lacrosse until my freshman year at C.M. Wright. I was one of four girls that made varsity soccer as a freshman and the lacrosse coach recruited us because he was looking for athletes," said Rawlick, who lived in Germany and Virginia for most of her youth.

C. Milton Wright is a perennial powerhouse in girls lacrosse and Rawlick was forced to develop strong stick skills while playing alongside such future Division I recruits as Kadie Stamper (Johns Hopkins), Amanda Barnes (North Carolina) and Katie McHugh (Loyola).

However, Rawlick always saw herself as a soccer player and planned to pursue that sport at the collegiate level. Lt. Col. Steve Rawlick is a 1976 graduate of West Point and convinced his daughter to consider a service academy. Erin Rawlick was excited about being accepted to the Naval Academy due largely to the strength of the women's soccer program.

Things didn't work out with soccer, so instead of trying to prevent goals as a sweeper, Rawlick is scoring them as an offensive midfielder.

"I heard Navy was going varsity and that Coach Timchal was coming in to build the program, so I thought it would be fun to get back into lacrosse," said Rawlick, who was named a USL/WDIA All-American after piling up 127 points (91 goals, 36 assists) as a plebe in 2007.

Of course, the big question was whether Rawlick and Navy's other club players would enjoy similar success at the Division I level. Apparently, the transition hasn't been that difficult since Rawlick leads the country with 64 goals and ranks second with 87 points. The 5-foot-8 sophomore was named first team All-Patriot League yesterday.

"I thought Erin was an exceptional player and that her skills would transfer from club to varsity competition," Timchal said. "That said, Erin has worked extremely hard every day in practice to become a better player. She has great presence in the midfield, is very dynamic with the ball in her stick and is a true finisher on offense."

Rawlick, who scored seven goals against both Canisius and Villanova, also ranks among the national leaders in draw controls (56). Her point total is the fourth-highest in Patriot League history.

"This season has been so rewarding on so many levels. I'm happy that I could contribute to getting this program off to a good start," Rawlick said. "I think a lot of people are surprised with how well Navy lacrosse has done in its first season. However, the feeling among the players and coaches is that we still have a lot more potential, a lot more room to grow."

ALL-PATRIOT LACROSSE

Navy men

First Team

Nick Mirabito, Sr.,Attack

Patrick Moran, Soph., Midfield

Geoff Leone, Jr., Def. Midfield

Second Team

Tim Paul, Soph., Attack

Basil Daratsos, Soph., Midfield

Mikelis Visgauss, Sr., Faceoff

Jaren Woeppel, Soph., Def. Midfield

Brendan Teague, Sr., Defense

Navy women

First Team

Erin Rawlick, Soph., Midfield

Meg Decker, Fr., Midfield

Katrina Nietsch, Fr., Midfield