Kat Buchanan
Biography
Personal: Buchanan majored in sport and recreation management at James Madison. She has one brother and is the daughter of Gregory and Elizabeth Buchanan. She has two dogs named Cassie and Finn. If she was not playing lacrosse, Buchanan would be an ice hockey player. She also participated in basketball, soccer, and hockey as a child. In her free time, she enjoys playing golf and can speak French.
2023 Season: Buchanan accumulated 692 leaderboard points while making her professional debut. She appeared in her first career game against Team Glynn in the season finale, making three saves and allowing one goal in 10 minutes against Team Bosco. She earned MVP 2 honors for her efforts and tallied 122 leaderboard points. She reached 100 or more leaderboard points in a game three times.
At James Madison: Buchanan appeared in 40 games from 2019-2023 and had a career goals-against average of 7.76, stopping 47.8 percent of the shots she faced. During her time at James Madison, she had a 20-3 record in goal, including a 19-3 mark as a redshirt senior. Buchanan earned Second-Team IWLCA All-South Region recognition and Second-Team All-AAC distinction. She led James Madison to their first American Athletic Conference regular season title. In the 2023 season, she set a program record with 19 victories as a goalkeeper and finished fourth in NCAA Division I with an 8.08 goals against average and a .473 save percentage. Buchanan also made history by becoming the first James Madison goalkeeper since 2014 to earn an assist, which she accomplished against Liberty on March 8, 2023. She had a career-high 12 saves against Virginia on March 22, 2023. Buchanan was a two-time selection as IWLCA Defensive Player of the Week. In her redshirt junior year, she played in seven games and had a season-high six saves against Liberty on April 13, 2022. During the 2021 season, she played in seven games with two starts and registered 10 saves with a 6.71 goals against average. In the shortened 2020 season due to COVID-19, Buchanan played in two games and did not allow a goal. As a freshman in 2019, she made three saves in two outings.