The Etownian >> Sports
Lady Jays 7-0 in MAC play
Wednesday April 21 2010
The Elizabethtown College women’s lacrosse team won their last 25 games against conference opponents. The word “bloodbath” has been thrown around at some of the games this season, and Saturday, April 10, was no different. The Lady Jays beat Misericordia 19-2. First-year Melanie Hartman led the team in points (three goals, one assist), while senior Katie Caprinolo and sophomore Kate Slade, in her first game back from a concussion, also scored three times each for a balanced attack. Last year, it was obvious that the skills of Katie Foley (’09) were the main threat of the offense, but this year is a little different. Junior Sarah Cullinan likes the balanced attack the Jays have been utilizing this season, as it keeps defenses on their toes.
“The other team can’t concentrate on only one person,” Cullinan said. “They have to be worried about all of us.”
First-year players have been making great contributions to the Middle Atlantic Conference dominance the team has enjoyed this year. First-year goalie Rachel “Weezy” Waldman has played practically nine full games between the pipes after junior Nicole Day went down with a knee injury earlier this year. Five first-year players have played in every game for the Lady Jays this season.
First-year starting defender Alexis Morris says she was looking for a place where she could play earlier in her career rather than later. “I did not want to have to wait until I was a junior to see the field,” Morris said. She has started every game thus far, and is averaging two ground balls, two draw controls and almost two caused turnovers per game this season.
Giving first-year players time on the field also allows them to learn a lot from the older players. Hartman, who has been the leading point-producing first-year with 18 points (13 goals, five assists), said she learns a lot from the upperclassmen. “I learned that you have to play with a lot of heart,” Hartman said. She certainly has done that thus far, with her four-point performance on Saturday.
Along with stellar play from the first-years, the upperclassmen have been on fire. Last Tuesday, April 6, the Lady Jays steamrolled the Dutchmen of Lebanon Valley College (LVC) 21-2 on their own turf. Senior Megan Byrnes reached a milestone with her goal and three assists. She became only the third player to join the 200 career points club. Other seniors led the charge along with Byrnes, as Caprinolo had a game-high four goals and Steph Kreis was dealing with two goals and four assists. Sophomores Katie Scheurich and Sam Reddles also pitched in with three goals each. The Lady Blue Jays outshot the Dutchmen 29-3 in the game, with LVC coughing the ball up 32 times.
On April 1, the Lady Jays hosted the Lycoming Warriors for yet another conference battle. Coach Michael Faith’s squad won the game 22-10, but not without a fight by the Warriors. The Lady Jays found themselves down 5-2 midway through the first half, a position to which they are not very accustomed. The deficit did not last long as the team combined to score five goals in under five minutes. The Lady Jay lead was 11-8 shortly after halftime. Kreis led a scoring attack, helping the Jays outscore the Warriors 11-2 from that point. Kreis set a career high with 10 points (four goals, six assists). Cullinan had four goals on the day, and Hartman, junior Meg Cassels and Byrnes had three goals apiece to aid in the victory.
The Jays demolished another conference opponent March 27 when they beat King’s College 20-0. Waldman made eight saves to keep the Monarchs out of the scoring summary. Cullinan led the way with five goals and two assists, while Kreis had three goals and five assists in the win. The big story on the day, however, was Caprinolo and Cullinan reaching 100 career points.
Saturday, the Lady Jays will host Manhattanville College at 1 p.m.
The Etownian >> Sports