Category: Sports

Leopards Rebound Against The Crusaders

MacKenzie Switzer receives the ball with Stella Malinowski trailing

The Leopards dominated every game statistic imaginable, and brought an important Patriot League win to their bottom line. If one had watched the Crusaders before Saturday, it would not have been a surprise that Lafayette would have had 17 versus. 4 shots, 10 versus 2 shots on goal, 9 versus 2 penalty corners and have the score 2-0. Holy Cross GK Brooke Ross came through with 8 saves at crucial moments. which kept the Crusaders in the game.

Lena Thedrian moves past a Holy Cross defender

But it was a good game for the Leopards, as they executed together to get those two goals, where creating space and movement away from goal contributed as much as the goal scorers themselves. Also Lafayette was aggressive in secondary shots close in. Nothing more demonstrated that than the first goal at 6:48 into the game. Up until then, there were a number of shots take directly at the Holy Cross keeper. That first score was created as the Leopards came at the Holy Cross right side. In the scoring sequence, the play started at the right hand side, meanwhile freshman Lea Good was at the far left of the circle. As Lafayette approached the goal, Good sprinted catching Ross committing to the right hand side. The crossing pass was delivered and Good got her first goal of the season.

Catalina Rubel sprints on her way to the circle

It wasn’t until 41:58 that Alex Darrah was to show some grit delivering the ball to the back of the cage by poking it past the keeper and a defender, during a scrum in front of the cage. Good in that case got the assist and the goal was enough to give the Leopards the 2-0 win.

During the game Lineke Spaans was an ever present threat with 5 shots during her 47 minutes on the field. It was clear the Crusaders were wary of number 8 all game long, as she was often was guarded closely with as many as 3 Holy Cross defenders. Also of note was the strong play of Lena Thedrian, using her skill in ariels to keep the ball on the attacking side of the field.

Leneke Spaans flies around the Holy Cross Defender

Catalina Rubel put in 45 important minutes and fans often found her threatening in or near the circle with 5 shots during the afternoon.

Raffi Fragomeni earned her second shut out of the year with 2 saves in a perfect afternoon. By virtue of the win, the Leopards are in command of their own future with regard to the League playoffs. Bucknell lost to Boston in double overtime ( without their star Lily Neilson) bringing their record to 1-2. Holy Cross is 0-3 in the League while Colgate’s loss to Lehigh makes them 0-2. Lafayette is now 2-1 tied with Boston and will play Colgate next Saturday. Bucknell will play American so a loss by Bucknell coupled with a win by the Leopards will create three teams with 3 losses all of which Lafayette has beaten. By virtue of the tie breakers the Leopards will have qualified for the tournament.

Defense always on the minds of the Leopards

There is still a chance to host if Lafayette runs the table and American loses two of their remaining league games. However, that sort of speculation should left to fans and concentration on the next game with Colgate is paramount. It will not be easy. as Colgate did give American a tough time earlier in the season during a 1-2 loss.

This young team is starting to meld, and keeping their eye on the next challenge will be important. It’s Colgate next week and only Colgate which is important!!!

GO Pards!!!

Just saw the behind the goal view of Lea Good’s goal and I got it soooo wrong. As Lea entered the circle on the right hand side and Katie Gibb delivered the ball to Good, she took the shot going past the GK on her left hand side. Number 17 Ellie Barton was there to deflect if needed. Congrats to our PL recognition awards to Lea and Raffi with Katie for honorable mention!!!

On to Colgate…more about that later!!!

WCR

Crusaders March To Lafayette In Key Patriot League Match up

In a match that is key for both Lafayette and Holy Cross, Saturday’s meeting could mean a lot to making the four team Patriot League playoffs. The Leopard’s must shake off a disappointing loss to American and hold off a Crusader effort to not leave with no wins in the League. Although an 0-3 record would not eliminate the Crusaders, it would make it an up hill climb with American, Lehigh, and Colgate yet to play. The Leopards on the other hand could finish Saturday with a 2-1 record with Colgate, Boston, and Lehigh to play. One more additional win for Lafayette would make it easier to assure a spot for the post season and one more additional loss would put Holy Cross on the sidelines.

Lafayette has played 3 top 25 teams on the way to a 3-5 overall record and beaten Bucknell, to arrive at a 1-1 record so far in the League. Holy Cross has lost in a close game with Bucknell 2-3 and suffered a four goal loss to Boston University. My take is beware the desperate opponent, so nothing should be taken for granted. Games with the Crusaders have for the most part been competitive affairs. Last year the Leopards came out ahead 1-0 up in Worchester.

The statistical differences are interesting and show opportunity on both sides. Goaltending seems to be a strength for Holy Cross with Brooke Ross having a 76% save percentage on a team that has given up 23 goals with 165 shots against them. Raffi Fragomeni has give up 17 goals against tough competition and on only 77 shots.

In Holy Cross’ most recent game the pattern was the same as they gave up 11 shots and 2 goals to lose 1-2 in overtime. Lafayette has given up 40 corners but earning 46. Holy Cross has given up 76 corners but earned 41. The Holy Cross shot percentage is 14 percent and opponent have an equal success rate with more shots. Lafayette’s shot percentage is 17 percent while their opponents have been 22 percent.

Lafayette certainly has the horses to have an impact. Leneke Spaans still leads the league in assists while Josephine van Wijk is among Patriot League leaders in goals with 6. Maquire Sturgis number 6 is the Crusader leading scorer with 3 goals in 8 games.

Look for the Crusaders to try to use a high press, long passes and short ariels to get past the Leopard defense. That seems to be their MO. Lafayette will use their deep scoring bench to wear down the Crusader bench and defense. Multiple shots and corners will tip the balance no doubt. In the last game against Byant they used only four players off the bench, I would expect the Leopards to be able to put close to double that number in quality players on the field.

No doubt it will be an intense match with the contest’s first period a struggle for either team to get the first goal. Noon Saturday for all you homecoming attendees!!!

Go Pards!!

American Uses Aggressive Defense As An Offensive Weapon

The game was postponed for one day due to bad weather and if I had to guess Sunday morning the weather still would have been an impediment. The drive down was miserable, with multiple car accidents and two professional football games in the area. However, the weather held up as the Leopards responded with a good first quarter with Ariel Schumacher scoring her first goal of the season with the help of Josephine van Wijk at 6:39. The play started as a penalty corner with a Katie Gibb insert resulting in the van Wijk to Schumacher combination close to the goal.

As the first quarter went on there was reason to be optimistic as Lafayette used their offensive weapons which included Leneke Spaans, van Wijk, and Delmontte who were used to break the American press. Lafayette made liberal use of ariels to get behind a defense that attempted to push the Lafayette back line towards their own goal and intercepting passes.

Statistically, Lafayette had 3 shots to 1 for American and 2 corners to American’s 0 corners. The weather retreated to the background as this looked like it might be a Leopards day.

The succeeding quarters turned that optimism around. As you could hear American Head Coach Steve Jennings from the sidelines, the Eagles responded with an early goal in the second by graduate student Megan Hoffman at 18:58. Neither team was to get any further corners, in fact Lafayette was not to get a corner for the remainder of the game. The Leopards did manage one shot in the second quarter but did not get a shot off at all in the second half.

The Eagles broke the tie at 38:05 as Charlene Boshoff assisted roommate Megan Hoffman off a corner, one of three in the third quarter. The graduate combination continued with American’s third goal in the fourth quarter with a goal at 49:57 off another penalty corner, their fifth of the half against none for the Leopards. Their defense continually pushed the Leopards back. Spaans continued as a threat but there were no circle penetrations I could remember in that second half.

The Leopards will move on with home games against Holy Cross and Colgate as they renew their Patriot League season with a current record of 1-1. American is now 2-0 and will play non-league opponent Delaware next week. Odds are that American may host while probably making the playoffs. But it’s a long season to go and the Leopards will need to refocus, get to the playoffs and a chance for redemption. In the meantime this fan will remember the line in the American account of the game on their website,” American Thunders Past Lafayette.” First, there are those PL league games with Holy Cross, Colgate, Boston University and finally the Brown clad Lehigh team down the road!!!

Malinowski Hat Trick And Fragomeni Save Of Penalty Stroke Lead Leopards To Second Win In A Row

Coach Maura Schimp leaps in appreciation of Fragomeni save of penalty stroke

Heroes come in all shapes and sizes and the 3-2 win by the Leopards over the Stags of Fairfield was certainly a great effort by the whole team, but a hat trick by freshman Stella Malinowski and a key stop of a penalty stroke ( not to mention her other 5 saves) gave the team and the coaches reason to jump for joy at the out come.

Closing in on a Fairfield back

The game had all the drama a spectator could want in an afternoon. Augustine Casteluchi opened the scoring for the Stags off a feed by Catalina Ness with about 6 minutes into the first period. The Leopard faithful had to wait for 19 minutes before Malinowski was to strike her first goal of the afternoon, after a feed from India Ralph on a penalty corner. Lafayette seemed to have control of the game, keeping most play in the first half in the neighborhood of the Fairfield goal. The first half ended in a 1-1 draw, but most Lafayette fans seemed confident going into the second half.

Going through the Stag defense

Despite earning an early second half penalty corner Lafayette failed to convert on the effort, and Fairfield lept into a counter attack which resulted in a go ahead goal a 31:17 penalty corner of their own, making the score 2-1. Fairfield went to sort of match up zone and were able to disrupt the passing of the Leopards but, Fragomeni was to come up with key saves turning away the experienced Fairfield attack!

Fairfield continued to concentrate on the Lafayette stars of Leneke Spaans and Josephine van Wijk but Lafayette kept the Fairfield defense off balance, as Lafayette’s offense found open players. A shot by Catalina Rubel at 39:15 got blocked, but Malinowski alertly found the rebound and planted a nifty lift past the Stag goalkeeper tying the score at 2-2 going into the fourth period.

The fourth period has been a strong period for Lafayette all year and this was to be no exception. Having gotten 4 shots in the third, Lafayette looked to step it up….and they did in heroic fashion. At 56:55 Stella Malinowski was to complete her hat trick during a corner assisted by Katie Gibb. Lafayette 3 Fairfield 2!!

Miraculous save by Fragomeni

However the drama was not done. At 58:15 the Stags were awarded a corner. It seemed to be blocked, but the officials called a penalty stroke. The call was video reviewed but Raffi Fragomeni in the end, still face a point blank shot. The Lafayette goal keeper made a wonderful stick save. There was still one more save to be made at 59:28 leaving the score 3-2 in favor of the Leopards.

During the game, I counted at least 4 successful video challenges by the Leopards, proving the worth of the system. The League has notified its members that Boston University and Colgate will be installing video referral this season. No doubt the entire league will be on referral before long!!

Victorious coaching staff joins the tailgate celebration

The game was followed by an outstanding team tailgate at the shelter by the Kamine Field House hosted by the parents.

Perfect end to weekend with a parent’s tailgate!!

Lafayette’s third full time coach finally cleared hurdles to entry to the United States last night, and arrived in time to assist in the game. I will leave it to the staff and the school to divulge all his details this week.

The next game will be in DC against the American Eagles. They lost today to Cornell 1-2 in overtime. This will be another high stakes meeting with a Patriot League rival. American is also 1-0 in PL play having beaten Colgate on Friday.

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!!!

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 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.