Women's lacrosse: Adding sport seemed like a natural for Navy

No project or program is undertaken lightly at the Naval Academy.

Whether it's an academic endeavor or a military initiative, any change to the academy environment is carefully considered and thoroughly studied.

So it goes without saying the decision to elevate women's lacrosse to varsity status was not made on a whim.

Athletic director Chet Gladchuk has been considering the move since shortly after arriving in Annapolis in September of 2001. He learned more about the popularity of the game by having Navy host the women's lacrosse World Cup and the NCAA Division I Final Four.

At the direction of Gladchuk and...