Author: William Rappolt

I am past chairman of the Lafayette Friends of Field Hockey and a former BOT member at Lafayette College. My wife and I are members of the Board of Trustees for USA Field Hockey Foundation. I am currently Chairman of that Board. I am the retired treasurer of M and T Bank Corporation and a 30 year fan of Division one field hockey

Lafayette Takes First Patriot League Game 2-1

It is trite to say it was a “team effort,” but I can think of no better description of tonight’s 60 minutes of excellent hockey. This was a game that was won by the Leopards rather than to say it was Bucknell’s loss. From the opening push off the game was played at tempo worthy of Division One. Every player was engaged…every Coach was contributing their best….every fan…every parent and even the Junior Clinic players on the sideline were behind the Leopards. The crowd of over 450 included alumni who traveled from Europe to cheer on their former teammates. Parents put together tailgates worthy of Lafayette’s long field hockey traditions.

From the first quarter on, the game had all the look and intensity of a playoff game. The first goal came from an Alex Darrah overhead deflection of a Lineke Spaans chip shot at 8:28 on the clock. The Maroon and White continued their high tempo of play responding to Buckell’s equally intense efforts. At 10:46, slightly more that 2 minutes later, India Ralph with an assist from Katie Gibb planted a rocket behind the Bucknell keeper during a corner. It was at that point the Lafayette defense rose to the occasion.

Lafayette goal keeper, Raffi Fragomeni had her best game of the year, turning away over 80 percent of the shots delivered by the Bisons. Lafayette had 7 shots to Bucknell’s 6 during the half. Leopard defenders were kept busy, especially defending Bucknell’s six corners.

Both teams came out determined in the second half and for a time it looked like Bucknell was getting the better of time in the Lafayette side of the field. The third quarter saw Bucknell get a 2-0 advantage in corners. It was then that the Leopard’s defense and bench dug deep. Counter attacks by Josephine van Wyk, defense by Makenzie Switzer, Stella Malinowski, Katie Gibb, and Lena Thedrian kept Bucknell at Bay only to yield to a corner shot by Bucknell’s Kira Leclerq on a corner at 38:44. It was an excellent high flick, top shelf.

But this night was to be for the Leopards and their fans, as we were to see Lafayette out shoot Bucknell 5-1 in fourth quarter. To no small advantage the home team also out cornered the visitors 6-1. With four minutes left on the clock the Bucknell Bison decided to pull their goalkeeper but still couldn’t manage to tie up the game.

The tension did not subside until the last several clicks of the clock leading the Leopards to a 2-1 win and 1-0 in League play. Remarkably, the crowd was reinforced by students who cheered in a continuous roar for 60 minutes. Noticed was at least 4 former players who made the trip…Sam DiMaio, Alex Talkow, Felicitas Hannes, and Lisa van der Geest.

My only regret was there was not enough space or time to recognize all individual team members. This was a total team win !

The Leopards will move on to another home game with Fairfield on Sunday. Meanwhile I will try to decompress!!!

Go Pards!!

Leopards Begin “Second Season” At Home Tomorrow

The Leopards have played 5 games against a challenging group of non-conference foes, and begin their conference games at 0-0 against the Bisons at 7:30 on Friday. Although only 6 games, the outcome of those games determines entry into the Patriot League Tournament where play between 4 qualifying teams will decide who will represent the Patriot League in the NCAA tournament.

Lafayette has an overwhelming lead in the record between the teams, but in the last ten years these two teams have become close rivals. Last year, a one goal win by Bucknell was sprinkled with controversial calls including a disputed goal ( without video review). This year the Bison will arrive with a record of 3-3 while the Leopards are 1-4 with 2 games decided by one goal. Bucknell and Lafayette have one common opponent Ohio State. Lafayette lost 1-4 and Bucknell played them tough losing 1-2.

Both teams have their offensive stars. Josephine van Wiyk leads the Leopards with 6 goals and a shot on goal percentage of 65 %, She is followed by the ubiquitous Lineke Spaans with 2 goals and 6 assists. Her shots on goal is 56 %. The Leopards are young and are growing together as a team. Katie Gibb is the recent Rookie of the Week. Stella Malinowski is in the mix with one goal on 11 shots while co-captain India Ralph has 3 assists during the current campaign.

The Bison are not without their stars, not the least of which is number 12 Lily Neilson the pre season offensive player of the year. She has responded with 4 goals in the 6 game stretch so far. But she has been supported by three players with 2 goals each number 15 Isabella Pavlides, number 5 Zoe Carlos- Pietrazek and number 22 Hannah Guarente. Pavliders has added 4 assists to her resume.

Each team’s defense will be trying to keep the other our of the circle. The Bison average 6.5 corners per game while the Leopards average 5.4 corners. Opponent corners are 6 for Bucknell and 4.4 for Lafayette. Average goals for Bucknell are 2.17 for ad 2.33 against. Lafayette averages are 2.00 for 2.20 against.

The weather is cooperating, expecting to be cool and clear for the game. Perfect Leopard weather!!!

GO PARDS!!

Leopards Win Statistical Battle But Fall 2-3

Columbia played a game 24 hours previously, and had only three substitutions. Lafayette had 21 shots to Columbia’s 9, 11 on goal to 7 for the home team , 8 corners to 3 for the eventual winners. Columbia drew first blood with a goal at 20:15 which stood up for the remainder of the first half.

On the back of 5 shots and 3 corners in the third period Columbia scored two more goals at 31:15 and 37:16. That was to be it for the Lions as the Leopard’s combination of Katie Gibb to Lineke Spanns to Josephine van Wijk got into gear and scored 2 goals within six minutes of each other, making it a one goal game at the end of the third quarter.

With Spanns and van Wijk getting into it in the fourth quarter, the Leopards were to get off 9 shots and 4 corners to Columbia’s 1 shot and 0 corners. Instead, the Columbia GK managed 7 saves during the 4th.

Given the threatening weather we decided not to make the trek to New York, but watched in on ESPN plus.

The season begins a new phase with the first game of the Patriot League season this Friday night against Bucknell. Bucknell beat Kent State today scoring 2 goals with 4 minutes left in the game to win 2-1. So forget the last several games and start a brand new season on Friday!!!!

Who In The Patriot League Is Playing The Tougher Schedule?

We all know its early to be judging relative strength, and how do you compare Lehigh’s 3-1 record to Lafayette’s 1-3 record or American 2-2 record. Strength of schedule is certainly a factor in those type of observations. Lafayette and American have certainly chosen the harder path. Using the NFHCA rankings those two teams have played more top 20 teams than any other PL Team. In fact, by Sunday Lafayette will have played 3 top teams with the addition of Syracuse. more than any other PL team to date. This week Syracuse is ranked 7th in the Coaches poll, and will be the highest ranking team played by PL members based on current rankings.

Colgate, Holy Cross and BU are the three PL teams who have not played a top 20 team to date. BU will be playing Boston College this week end. Lehigh and Bucknell have played OSU. Lehigh lost 5-2 and Bucknell played them tough in 1-2 loss in Columbus Ohio.

Lafayette’s game with UMASS, according to reports and the stats, looked to be very close. Can Lafayette pull the upset against Syracuse? Syracuse will play Cornell tonight.

The all important PL games will start next week as the Leopards will meet Bucknell on a night game at Rappolt Field. In the meantime the Leopards will play Columbia on Sunday and it should be an indication if this young team has come together. Bucknell this week will tangle with Towson 3-1 and Kent State 1-3. Kent State has had the harder schedule and will be playing Penn State before they meet the Bison.

This weekend’s action could be interesting!!!

Thumbs Up And Thumbs Down

Thumbs Down

First, a very large thumbs down to the University of Massachusetts for not having either video or live stats during the Lafayette game. Perhaps they spent all their money on giving out Dunkin Donut coupons or were just lazy. In any case, as a division one school you would think they would have one or both options available. It was “bush” in any case.

The game itself at least according the published statistics was close. Lafayette had seven shots to UMASS 8. Shots on goal were 4 to 3 in the Leopards favor and penalty corners were 5-3 in Lafayette’s favor. In shots taken, Stella Malinowski took three with one on goal, Spaans had one on goal, van Wijk had 2 with one on goal and Lena Thedrian had one on goal. Given the time breakdown it looks like the Lafayette GK was pulled with 3 minutes to go, but I wouldn’t know since real time info was not there from the hosts!!

If we were to believe the post game stats our subs entered the game but did not have any time on field!! UGGH

We were not able to make the trip not wanting to buck Labor Day traffic on I 95!!!

Thumbs UP

Since I was unable to view the Lafayette game in person or online I surfed around to several other games played on Sunday and was treated to some amazing action, especially from GK in losing efforts,

First, both Patriot League teams, American and Holy Cross lost in the overtime, but not without some outstanding goal keeping to get them there. American played Liberty, and lost in a shoot out, but not without the heroics of Bryn Underwood who did everything but stand on her head to keep American in the game. She had 5 saves on 5 shots on goal in the regular time and overtime competition, including a stop on a stroke. At one point it looked like Liberty had won in the second overtime, but Bryn called for a review and it was discovered on the reverse chip shot the Liberty player had used her back stick. ( remember my article before the season where I noted Sean Rappaport,the person in charge of officials, mentioned that there may be a large amount of back sticks on reverse chip shots).

Holy Cross lost 2-1 in overtime after Brooke Ross proved to be a virtual wall against Brown’s 20 shots on goal. Brooke saved 18 during her afternoon. Brown had 37 shots and Holy Cross ultimately succumbed on a penalty stroke.

In a contest of two top ten teams, Princeton and North Carolina, Princeton was kept in it through the efforts of senior Robyn Thompson who had 10 saves against 12 shots on goal including a stop on a penalty stroke. It was a heroic effort against a very skilled and fast UNC team that kept the pressure on the Princeton offense denying them circle penetration for much of the game.

Thumbs Down

It was an extremely hot afternoon which resulted in one Princeton player who appeared in distress on the sideline. According to the announcer there was not an EMT present. Yes, the University hospital is spitting distance from the field but if true it deserves a thumbs down.

Secondly, a definite thumbs down to the Ivy League who will not let there teams begin practice the same time as other Division One teams. Since, starting preseason with classes not having begun, I see harm to the student athletes of a shortened preseason. To my mind, this is not to the benefit of their health and safety. The Ivy League does march to its own drummer not to the welfare of their student athletes in this case..

Finally

The Leopards will meet a very good Syracuse team friday night. ( There will be TV and live stats). They bring with them Charlotte de Vries, the fifth year senior who in my opinion might be the best player in country. No doubt she will be on the USA Team when she finishes her collegiate career.

Congratulations to the three Lafayette Canadians who will represent their country at the Junior World Cup in November. Stella Malinowski, Laine Delmotte, and Kate Kibb. Well done!!!

Van Wijk Come Through With Two Goals In Overtime 2-3 Loss.

With seconds left on the clock, Josephine van ‘Wijk scored the tying goal to send the game to overtime with assists from India Ralph and Leneke Spaans. Spanns had two assists and 3 shots during the game. Van Wijk was busy all game long getting 2 goals on 4 shots, three of which were on goal. Lafayette had 11 shots to Vermont’s 13 shots. Corners were 7-8 Vermont’s favor.

Looking from a fan’s perspective, both teams looked like they were waiting for the other team to make an error, which led to a lot of play horizontally rather than vertically. Both teams scored in the first period, with Vermont scoring early.

Vermont came out more aggressively in the third quarter and were rewarded with the lead for all but the last 30 seconds of the game. Their press was to earn them the ball for most of the half. Lafayette pulled their goal keeper with 3 minutes to go and van Wijk and Spaans put the aggressive move to good use to score.

The Catamounts put to rest any theory that a slow overtime was planned. They went right to goal and scored ending the match at 3-2.

Lafayette Travels To New England..First Stop Vermont

It’s a bunch of firsts for Lafayette as they they make their first extended trip of the season to New England to meet two opponents not seen for at least 10 years, the University of Vermont and the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Under 9th year coach Katie Pfeifer Vermont had two back to back winning seasons. Last year the Cattamounts went 13-5 and 5-3 in the American East Conference. They finished 4th in their conference. This year they were a preseason number 6 conference pick by SID’s and coaches.

Looking under the hood a little, Vermont returns two all rookie team selections, number 15 Sophie LaFranc from Munich , and number 22 Mora Fernandez de Olivera from Buenos Aries. If that isn’t enough, they also have all league selections number 28, 6 footer,Alina Gerke from Hamburg, and Sophie Drees number 23 from Bremen Germany. Vermont also could benefit from an interesting transfer from Division 2 Lotte Kanters. who led the the division in goals last year. She is from the Netherlands.

Both teams come into the match at 1-1, Vermont having beat Sacred Heart 6-2 and losing to number 8 ranked Syracuse 9-1. Against Sacred Heart the Catamounts scored 6 goals on 13 shots ( 10 on goal) to dominate the game. One goal was scored by LeFranc ( on 4 shots), 2 from Drees ( on 2 shots), 2 from Gerke on 2 shots, and one from Fernandez de Olivera on 2 shots. Vermont had 3 saves on 5 shots on goal and earned 5 corners.

Against Syracuse it was tough going losing 9-1. The single goal was from Lefranc on her only shot of the game. Total shots were 5. Reggie Hillary had 1 shot, Lefranc had 1, Drees had 2, and Haley Buffenbarger had the remaining one.

In the goal, Lauren Halenkamp faced 27 shots, 16 SOG and saving 5. Syracuse out cornered Vermont 11-5

Both teams hope to end Friday at 2-1 and although this is a non- conference game they hope to set the the tone for the season by bouncing back.

The game starts at 3 o’clock and will be live streamed,

GO PARDS

Lafayette Outnumbered In 4-1 Loss To Ohio State

The Ohio State Buckeyes brought their 33 player squad to the Leopards and were able to execute a sustained press using 22 players to bottle up the Lafayette offense for most of the game. It was a hot and humid afternoon and the Ohio State coaching staff were able to substitute liberally to reenergize a very aggressive press which kept the Leopards off balance.

Lea Good controls the ball

Ohio’s Makenna Webster struck first using an assist by Anne Marie Krebs at 26:52 into the game, only to be followed by a second goal two minutes later, to give the Buckeye’s a 2-0 lead going into the first half. Using the strength of 6 corners and 12 shots the Buckeyes were countered by the Leopards who were only able to muster 2 shots and one corner during the first half.

In the second half, the Leopards were able to get off 6 shots to Ohio State’s 2 in the third quarter, one of which connected at 32:53. Stella Malinowski, a Lafayette first year scored the first Lafayette goal at 43:54 to earn the first goal of her career while closing the gap to 3-1. OSU finished the scoring with a goal at 46:57.

Mackensie Hall moves the ball upfield

Saves were the same at 5 a piece and the majority of the goals were made off of scrums in front of each cage. The tone was set early on, as OSU made their fist substitutions in the fourth and fifth minute of the contest, bringing in 7 players off the bench which provided the energy to sustain the close guarding of Lafayette’s playmakers. Malinowski was able to get off 4 shots, 3 on goal to lead the Leopards, including her score. Freshman Lea Good and Sophomore Catalina Robel provided the balance of shots in the game.

The Leopards will have gained experience, as they travel for the first of two away games in New England against the University of Vermont (1-1) on Friday followed by UMass Amherst (2-0) on Sunday. Vermont bested Sacred Heart 6-2 on Friday and lost to Syracuse 9-1 on Sunday. UMass finished the weekend undefeated by beating Albany 3-2 in double overtime and Quinnipiac 2-1. They will be playing Harvard on Friday before meeting the Leopards.

The rest of the Patriot League had mixed results as Bucknell lost to Temple 2-1, American lost in overtime to Penn State 3-2, Colgate beat Rider 2-1 in overtime and Lehigh beat Ball State 4-3. Holy Cross did not play and remained with zero defeats based on their 1-0 overtime win on Friday.

Spaans, van Wijk, and Rubel Provide Opening Day Fireworks in 5-0 win.

In a display of speed and power the Leopards delighted an opening day crowd with an offense not seen for years by the home folks. I have to admit I was a little concerned after I wrote the pregame piece on the Seahawks. They are a reconstructed team with 5th year and graduate students, and sprinkled with a group of international players. But from the opening push, my doubts were put to rest as a clinic using amazing athletic skill, and speed was evident in the Leopards tonight.

It was only 5:10 into the contest when Leneke Spaans, with the sun at her back, delivered a strike over the head of the opposing goal keeper. The last time I saw a strike like that was 50 years ago while in the navy, when an F-14 came out of the sun at supersonic speed, and delivered a payload on the beach. Leneke set the tempo for this team and it was clear it was to be followed later on, by a group effort on both sides of the ball.

Leopards fans had to wait for 18 and 1/2 minutes for Catalina Rubel’s contribution to the score, with a rebounded flick that made the score 2-0. Five minutes later Josephine van Wiik took a feed from co-captain India Ralph during a penalty corner, giving the home town folks a 3-0 lead. Alex Darrah had taken a shot, which was saved by Sam Block, the Wagner goal keeper, eventually leading to another penalty corner after a video review. Wagner had an unsuccessful video challenge themselves on the goal and the halftime score was left at 3-0.

After halftime Spaans again struck at 32:36 with a reverse chip making the score 4-0. The scoring was not to end until van Wijk made it 5-0 after a Katie Gibb feed on a penalty corner.

It was not just offensive fireworks that brought the win home, the defense and midfield kept the Seahawks at bay. Lena Thedrian, Katie Gibb, Laine Delmonte, and Stella Malinowski were busy intercepting passs and turning around the Wagner attack. Have no doubt, this was a team effort no matter who was in the game. Raffi Fragomeni recored her first shut out in the win turning back Wagner with two saves on four shots.

The Leopards took 15 shots to Wagner’s 4, and had 5 corners to Wagner’s single corner in the second period. Each team used 16 players in the contest. Sunday, the Leopards will take on Ohio State at 3:30

After coming home I watched some of the Ohio State vs Lehigh contest, which Lehigh lost 5-2. I didn’t think Lehigh was as bad or Ohio State as dominant as the score may indicate. Ohio State scored in bunches and used the press effectively. They deflected ball into the cage and often had an attacking player positioned at the post.

Around the league Boston lost to Michigan State on the back of early scores in the first period by Michigan State. Holy Cross beat Stonehill in a driving rain in double overtime, Colgate lost a heartbreaker to Central Michigan 3-2, Bucknell had a disappointing loss to Drexel 4-0 and American looked very strong in beating Ohio University.

Sunday American will welcome Penn State ( they a lost to Virginia tonight), and Bucknell will stay in Philly to take on Temple. Lehigh will host Ball State on Sunday. The Leopards will of course tangle with Ohio State at 3:30 on Sunday.

Preseason Rankings And All That

There is one thing for certain that can be said for preseason ranking….in no way will they be the same at the end of season. Each conference has nominated their predicted order of finish, and I am sure each team has justifiably ignored it as fan fun!! So far Lafayette has played in preseason games, the number one and number two teams in the CAA. The Leopards will be playing the number 2 team in the NEC on Friday.

The SID’s and coaches in the Patriot League have picked Lafayette for fourth and American first. However, nothing is more motivating for a team than to be under appreciated. Do rankings matter??? Ultimately, they could, as RPI is a strong factor in seeding for the national tournament. I happen to think this may be the year we may see two, maybe even three Patriot Teams in the top 25. I like Lafayette’s chances, and both American and Boston look strong with decent schedules. All three will be playing preseason ranked teams early on. Lafayette will play number 8 ranked Syracuse in early September.

The top twenty teams (preseason) are: UNC, Northwestern, Maryland, Michigan, PSU, Virginia, Iowa, Syracuse, Louisville, Princeton, Saint Jo’s, Wake, Harvard, Liberty, UConn, Boston College, ODU, Albany, and Duke. In my opinion, I think ODU is under rated and UNC could be challenged.

Ohio State, who finished sixth in the Big Ten last year will be bringing their 32 person squad to the Lehigh Valley to take on Lehigh on Friday and Lafayette on Sunday. There are several new coaches on the list of note, at UNC, PSU and Syracuse.

There is also a new tournament for the IVY League this year which could generate a surprise at the end. Winners of conference tournaments get automatic bids and at large bids will be decided by an evaluation committee. I thought last year ODU ( the regular season Big East conference champion) should have been in, but was defeated by Liberty in the conference tournament.

Meanwhile Lafayette has named their leadership for the season and picked two strong juniors in Leneke Spaans, and India Ralph. Anyone who has watched these two play, will recognize their leadership. They enjoy the respect of their fans, teammates and opponents.

Penn State’s Jemma Punch (23) during the game with Lafayette. The No.5 Nittany Lions defeated Lafayette, 2-1 in double overtime at the Penn State Field Hockey Complex on Sunday afternoon Oct. 9, 2022. Photo by Mark Selders

Everyone starts evenly this Friday but 50 % will be 1-0 and 50% will be 0-1 at the end of the day. A good start these next two weeks will change the above list for sure!!! BU, American, Lafayette and Lehigh will be meeting Big Ten schools this week end. Victory by the Patriot League would be a statement!!! GO PARDS