Drexel University

Drexel University Athletics
Daskalakis Athletic Center - 3141 Chestnut St Philadelphia, PA 19104

Division 1 Pennsylvania Northeast

Private Large National competitor

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Coaches

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Katie O'Donnell

atie O'Donnell was named the Mary Semanik Head Women's Lacrosse Coach in May of 2023 after serving as the interim coach for the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

In 2024 O’Donnell guided Drexel to a 13-6 record and their fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, the first team in Drexel history to do so. DU had monumental victories over ranked opponents, including a 10-8 victory at home against No. 25 Penn State and a 13-12 win on the road at No. 16 Navy. O'Donnell helped lead the Dragons to the CAA Championship game for the first time under her tenure, falling to eventual champion Stony Brook. Corinne Bednarik was named CAA Attacker of the Year and Jenika Cuocco earned CAA Goalie of the Year, with Cucco receiving All-American honors by USA Lacrosse, Inside Lacrosse, and IWLCA. Overall, six Dragons were selected to All-Conference teams.

As interim head coach, O'Donnell guided the Dragons to a 12-6 record and their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance in 2023. Under her tutelage, Corinne Bednarik and Jenika Cuocco were named USA Lacrosse Magazine All-Americans. Bednarik was selected as the CAA Attacker of the Year, and Cuocco was both the Goalkeeper of the Year and Rookie of the Year. In total, five players were selected to All-Conference teams.

O'Donnell assumed the leadership role midway through the 2022 season and made an immediate impact on the team, helping to lead Drexel to its first-ever CAA Championship with a thrilling overtime victory against Towson in the title game.

A West Chester, Pa. native, O'Donnell joined the Drexel staff after spending two seasons with Lehigh University. Under the direction of head coach Jill Redfern, O'Donnell helped lead the Mountain Hawks to back-to-back winning seasons. The Mountain Hawks finished the shortened 2021 season with a 9-4 record and 6-1 in Patriot League play. O'Donnell helped push the Mountain Hawks to their first Patriot League title game for the first time since 2010 and win two Patriot League Tournament contests for the first time in program history.

In her inaugural season with Lehigh, the Mountain Hawks competed to a 6-2 record heading into conference play before the season was canceled due to COVID-19. With the help of O'Donnell, Lehigh saw only the second athlete in women's lacrosse history to be named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List.

A two-time All-American midfielder, O'Donnell was a two-time team captain at Penn State, was an IWLCA first team All-American, and won Big Ten Midfielder of the Year. She ended her career fourth in program history for career goals (203) and sixth in points (227) and went on to be selected fourth overall in the 2018 WPLL (Women's Professional Lacrosse League) Draft by the New England Command. O'Donnell is currently a member of the United States National Team and tried out to be part of the 2021 World Lacrosse Championship team.

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Katrina Geiger

Katrina Geiger joined the Drexel women's lacrosse staff as an assistant coach on July 27, 2022. She came to Drexel from Penn State, where she was an assistant coach and defensive coordinator for the Nittany Lions.

In 2024, the Dragons had the 13th-best scoring defense in the nation under Geiger. The team allowed just 9.05 goals per game, leading them to a fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the first team in Drexel history to do so. Belle McHugh was named CAA First-Team, collecting 31 ground balls and causing 20 turnovers. Camryn Ryan lead the team in caused turnovers with 22.

In her first season on staff, Geiger coached the Dragons' defense to their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The defensive unit ranked 13th in scoring defense among all Division | programs at 9.28 goals allowed per game.

Before her stint at Penn State, Geiger was the primary defensive coach for Georgetown for two seasons. During those years, she coached nine All-Big East honorees, three IWLCA All-South Region honorees and one All-American. Geiger previously coached for one season at Elon, where she worked with the offense and the goalkeepers.

Geiger, who is from Drexel Hill, Pa., plays professionally for Athletes Unlimited. She has been a member of the team since 2020. Previously, Geiger played in the Women's Professional Lacrosse League for two years with the Philadelphia Fire.

As a player, Geiger was a four-year starter and two-time captain for Loyola University in Baltimore, Md. Geiger also played on three Patriot League championship teams and five teams that advanced to the NCAA Championships. She was named Second Team All-Patriot League twice. Geiger graduated in 2017 with a communications degree and earned her master's degree in emerging media in 2018.

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Ana White

Drexel has announced the hiring of Ana White as an assistant coach for the women's lacrosse team.

"We are so excited to welcome Ana to Drexel," Mary Semanik head women's lacrosse coach Katie O'Donnell said. "Her experience coaching at the highest level is invaluable and I cannot wait to experience the impact she has on this program and its student-athletes on and off the field. Ana has such a passion for the game and we are lucky to have someone with her knowledge and experience to be a part of our Dragon family."

White previously spent the last five seasons at Rutgers University as the Offensive Coordinator and Draw Unit Coach. She helped lead the Scarlet Knights to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2021 and 2022, while capturing first-time program wins over Big-Ten foes Northwestern, Maryland and Penn State.

Before her time with Rutgers, White was the Defensive Coordinator and Draw Unit Coach at Lafayette from 2014-19. During her tenure, the Leopards received ten All-Patriot League honors and reached the Patriot League Quarterfinals in 2017.

"I'm so excited and grateful for this incredible opportunity to join the Drexel program and work alongside Katie and Katrina," said White. "The grit that the Drexel athletes embody, paired with the dedication of this awesome coaching staff, is a recipe for success and I can't wait to be a part of it."

Prior to making the leap to coaching, White made an impact at Lafayette as a midfielder from 2011-14, earning Patriot League Rookie of the Year in 2011 and Midfielder of the Year in 2013. The four-time All-Patriot League selection finished her career as the league's all-time leader in draw controls (398) and currently holds the caused turnover record (125).

The Swarthmore, Pa. native graduated from Lafayette in 2014 with a degree in biology and a minor in art.

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Zoe Bennett

Drexel women's lacrosse has announced former Dragons goalie Zoe Bennett as an assistant coach.

"We are so excited to welcome Zoe back to the Dragon family," Mary Semanik head women's lacrosse coach Katie O'Donnell said. "Zoe has a passion not only for the game but for this program. She knows what it means to be a Dragon, and bringing that experience to our student-athletes is invaluable."

Bennett previously spent one season with Temple University as an assistant coach, helping oversee the defense and goalkeepers. During that time with the Owls, the cherry and white finished 9-7 and reached the American Athletic Conference Tournament semifinal game. Under Bennett's guidance, Temple ended the year with a top-25 scoring defense and goalkeeper Taylor Grollman had a .470 save percentage, which was 15th best in the nation.

Before joining the Drexel Staff, Bennett was also a Goalie and All-Star Team Assistant Coach with Ultimate Lacrosse, Pennsylvania. She assisted in the training of goalies from 6th to 11th grade. Bennett is also a Track Design Engineer at HNTB.

"I am so excited to be back at home and thankful for the opportunity to coach alongside Katie, Katrina, and Ana," said Bennett. "This team is something special and I can't wait to watch what we accomplish this season."

The Pasadena, Md. native was a five-year starter for Drexel from 2018-22. In 2021, the former captain was named CAA Goalie of the Year and helped capture the program's first CAA Championship. Bennett finished her career third on the Dragons' all-time saves list with 695, ended her graduate season in the top-20 nationally in total saves (2nd – 204), save percentage (12th – .493), saves per game (15th – 10.20) and goals against average (18th – 10.54).

Bennett graduated from Drexel in 2022 with a degree in Architectural Engineering with Digital Building.