SOUTH BEND, Ind. – After a successful regular season and a run to the ACC Semifinals in the conference tournament, a record seven Irish women have been named All-American by USA Lacrosse Magazine, as announced by the committee Thursday, May 9. The honorees include a pair of First Team recognition in Jackie Wolak and Kasey Choma while MK Doherty was tabbed to the Second Team. Madison Ahern, Kelly Denes, Olivia Dooley and Keelin Schlageter were all recognized as Honorable Mention in the 2024 edition of the award.
The ACC Attacker of the Year and one of the nation’s top scorers, Jackie Wolak earns her third USA Lacrosse Magazine All-American nod, having been named to the Third Team in 2023 and honorable mention in 2021. The graduate attacker boasts a team-best 92 points this season, including 54 goals and 38 assists. As the team’s leading scorer, she has helped the Irish to one of the top-rated offenses in 2024 and ranks fifth nationally in points while leading the ACC. She averages 5.11 points per game, having started all 18 contests for the Irish as they head into the NCAA Tournament play. Wolak boasts 11 games with a hat trick or better goal total, six of which came in conference play against one of the hardest schedules in the nation.
Fellow graduate student, Choma joins Wolak as a First Team honoree and has her third overall nod to an USA Lacrosse Magazine All-America award. Choma was previously recognized as a First Team-All-ACC honoree and ranks third on the team in total points with 70. A midfielder, Choma boasts 48 goals on the season and has recorded 3+ goals in 10 games this season, including a sock trick performance in the regular season finale at Louisville. On the defensive side of the ball, Choma has 21 ground balls on the season and has caused five turnovers in 18 games started.
A Second-Team All-ACC award winner earlier this season, Doherty earns her first All-American nod as a member of the USA Lacrosse Magazine Second Team in 2024. A senior midfielder, Doherty has made a big impact this season, averaging 4.87 draw controls per game as part of one of the nation’s best draw control units, while also adding 42 points to her resume with 27 goals and 15 assists. In addition to helping the team retain possession each game, Doherty has been a force at reclaiming possession with nine caused turnovers and 18 ground balls this year. She also leads the team in game-winning goals with five, including four over ranked opponents. Doherty’s game-clinching performances late in contests led her to be named Player of the Week on multiple occasions this season, including by USA Lacrosse Magazine, IWLCA, ILWomen and the ACC.
Ahern ranks second on the team in points (72) while her 53 goals is one shy of the team-high. A 2024 First Team All-ACC honoree, the graduate attacker averages just under 1.00 free position goals per game and sits among the conference bests in the category. She leads the team in shots on goal average with 4.83 shots on target per game and boasts three game-winning goals. In 2024, Ahern boasts a minimum of one goal per game and has started all 18 games for the team this season.
The team’s draw specialist, Denes leads the team with 131 draw controls this season, just four shy of her career best. She is the only woman in program history to eclipse triple digit draw controls in three seasons and set the Notre Dame record for career controls in her most recent outing (370). Earlier this season, Denes tied the single-game program record with 16 draw controls when the team hosted Pitt on March 30. Her 7.28 draw controls per game ranks 13th nationally and is second in the ACC. In addition to her performance at the dot, Denes boasts nine caused turnovers, 15 ground balls, five goals and two assists for the Irish heading into the NCAA Tournament. The Honorable Mention recognition is the second of her career, having earned the distinction a season ago as well.
On the defensive side of the ball, Dooley made an immediate impact on the Irish upon her arrival earlier this year. A 2024 All-ACC Tournament Team honoree, the graduate defender boasts a team-best 1.89 caused turnovers per game and has 34 caused turnovers on the year. In addition to forcing the turnovers, Dooley also leads the team in ground balls with 33 and set a career best five ground balls and six caused turnovers earlier this year at Liberty.
Having started all 18 games, Schlageter earned All-American Honorable Mention honors for the first time in her career. Her 24 ground ball recoveries ranks third on the team while her 23 caused turnovers in 2024 ranks second behind Dooley. She also boasts 15 points with 11 goals and four assists en route to the recognition.
The Irish women return home this weekend to host the First and Second rounds of the NCAA Tournament with game one set to take place at 1pm on Friday, May 10.