Katie Gibb and Mackenzie Hall were in the middle of it all afternoon
Delaware arrived at Rappolt Field prepared for a competitive outing and that’s exactly what they got in the 2 1/2 hour game like scrimmage. The Blue Hens drew first blood in the first half but the Leopards showed a diversified attack and a tenacious defense to eventually go to a 2-1 lead in the second half. Delaware tied it all up with less than a minute to go.
India Ralph and Lena Thedrian were there on defense
The two then practiced a 7 v7 showdown and that ended with no score for either side. It was then to the inevitable shoot out and quite frankly it was a that point I lost track of the scores. The school was experimenting with a new digital scoreboard at the end, which got pushed by the wind and shut down.
I will not go into scoring details but the team and coaches should be very pleased. This was indeed an opposing team in Delaware which played well and could be nationally ranked at the outset of the season. By the second quarter the Leopards looked connected and played like veterans. The Spaans,van Wijk duo was a factor all game. Katie Gibb and India Ralph advanced the ball from the defense. Mackensie Hall was in the mix…especially in the second and third quarter. Lena Thedrian again showed leadership.
The GK duo of Emma Garvey and Raffi Fragmenti were on it all game.
The Leopards now have a week to rest and prepare for Wagner on Friday and Ohio State on Sunday. There are several players who are dinged up but expect they will heal and contribute in due course.
Yes, I know it was only scrimmage, but I saw a lot to like this afternoon. I am a homer, but in 20 plus years of watching Leopard Field Hockey this seemed to me to be the best first outing of the season. They were fast, aggressive, tough on defense and especially impressive with the integration of our first year players. The Leopards scored 3 goals during the 4 quarter practice contest. Goals were scored by Alex Darrah on a scramble in front of the goal, Ellie Barton on a nifty reverse stick shot after a feed by Mackensie Hall, and finally Lineke Spaans rocketed the go ahead goal in the last quarter.
Leneke and the ball
Lineke was a threat all game long while she did her usual impression of the “flash.” She will be scary to opponents this season! In addition, Josephine van Wijk showed terrific skills moving the ball through the midfield and into the scoring circle. First year player Lena Thedrian was a force on defense, but also was a key contributor in starting the offense. By my observation she had 2 defensive saves!
Mackenzie Switzer showed great maturity and field presence. I’ll leave it there, and save the surprise for future opponents. However, rest assured there is more to tell. The best part is their team attitude…they are mentally tough!!!
Defense was all there as Switxer and friends defend the goal
This was no easy team in Monmouth. This afternoon they were picked as the number 2 preseason picked in the CAA. On Friday, the Leopards will meet the number one pick, Delaware. There are more surprises to come in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, the Leopards were picked to finish fourth in the Patrtiot League. Lineke Spaans, and India Ralph were picked as all conference preseason picks. The order of finish picked by coaches and school athletic PR officials is American, Boston, Bucknell, Lafayette, Lehigh, Holy Cross, and Colgate. We shall see!!!
Aylin Aufenacker Field Hockey vs. Fairfield 8-26-2022
The Leopards head for the Jersey shore for a scrimmage with Monmouth University on Tuesday. The field is named in honor of the donor’s favorite race horse to answer the obvious question in the title of the article. The Leopards have a had good history with Hawks having won 12 out of the 14 times the two teams have met. Of late Monmouth has been an improved team by landing in the top 25 and moving to the CAA. During last year they acquired a won loss record of 10-9 with a loss of 1-3 to Drexel in the CAA tournament.
They played an ambitious schedule which include UConn, Delaware, Rutgers, Syracuse, Harvard, Boston College, and Princeton. Their worst loss was 1-6 against Princeton and best win was 8-0 against Sacred Heart. In all, they outscored their opponents 45-33.
The last meeting with Lafayette was in 2019 in which the Leopards prevailed 2-1 in double overtime. At the time the Hawks were ranked 25 in the nation. Against Lafayette they have a 1-4 recored at home. All the games have been close affairs for the most part with the last 4 meetings showing total goals in Monmouth’s favor 5-6.
Field Hockey vs. Delaware 9-4-2022
Of the 45 goals scored last year 24 were scored by their all American Annick van Lange scoring 24. She will be on the field Tuesday but this time as a student coach!! The next two highest scorers with 5 each from last year will return. Jess Tucker a junior, number 22 from New Zealand, and graduate student Aylin Aufenacker number 10 from Hamburg, Germany will be looked upon to step up this season.
In the goal, the Hawks will be replacing Phileins Hazen who had a save percentage of 78.8. The roster shows two freshman goal keepers, Jessie Eiselin from Amsterdam and Maeve Clarke from Beverly Ma.
Coach Carli Figlio likes to run a fast break offense and I’m sure she will be trying to recapture her offensive explosiveness during the scrimmage. It should be a challenge for the reconstructing Leopard defense.
Weather is expected to be good for a 12 noon start. Both should be excited as they try to establish their personalities early on!!
It’s three days before the first competition of the season and for two hours of practice I saw a very skilled group on the pitch. They all seemed fit and ready to learn and from my perch on the sidelines this practice was all about establishing a tempo of play. There is no doubt that this group has the skills. In years I have been watching the Leopards this may be one of the more collectively skilled teams that we have seen on the field.
Each drill emphasized moving and reacting, imprinting in muscle memory the actions necessary to move the ball down the field. What was most amazing was the ability of first year players to integrate into the system. Secondly, it is clear there is a commitment to succeed and to win on the field. This is an ambitious squad with some obvious ability to be led. And there are clear leaders on the field!!
Much like the football practice I witnessed several days ago there is a clear crisp plan and timing to practice with very little standing around. The team is responding with the intensity of winners! During my playing days, in football and lacrosse, preseason was two and sometimes three sessions a day. Today it seems there is an assumption of fitness and an emphasis on learning.
As hard as the team is working, there are efforts in the background to provide the support needed to be a Division one representative. You may have to trust me on this, but there are significant efforts afoot on venue, and background support as well. It’s all a race to August 25 and the first game weekend with Wagner and Ohio State.
Let there be no doubt there is dedication and hard work which will result in success. That is part of the educational experience for all involved.
I made a short trip to Easton and saw a Lafayette Campus in the process of rebuilding on many fronts. The path leading down the hill from the campus is being rebuilt, there is a new dorm rising on a building site off of McCartney street, and out at Metzger there is construction on a new stadium for soccer rising. The soccer stadium should be ready for the first home game, but there is still lots of work to be done. The soccer stadium is the first of the physical enhancements scheduled for Lafayette’s athletic facilities.
Still to come will be a multi story structure for Lacrosse which will be adjacent to the field hockey field and I am told it will house and support some elements of the hockey program. Eventually, there will be a new press box for field hockey and perhaps a Jumbotron scoreboard. Already, field hockey has the only video referral capability in the patriot league. It is my belief we could see some of those improvements at some point this season! Perhaps even a third asst coach by September.
However, it was not only the physical plant that is in the process of changing. Teams have already started arriving and practicing. Football and soccer teams have been hard at work for the last week. In evidence on Saturday were current and future field hockey players engaged in a clinic. Formal arrival is in three days but no doubt many of our Leopards are hard at work preparing for a challenging preseason. The first preseason game is August 15th at Monmouth only 11 days away!!
Meanwhile at work was the football team training in shoulder pads and helmets as they become accustomed to the August heat. Their first game is nearly one month away but their practices are crisp and run with military precision. If the effort and enthusiasm is any indication, this could be an interesting season on the gridiron.
Meanwhile, it was great to see our field hockey Leopards on the field giving direction and instruction at a clinic for younger players. I was impressed with Lineke Spaans’ teaching skills as the participants held on to every word from last year’s athlete of the year.
Impatience, is my current mindset. I am ready for the season to begin with all sports, and I am especially ready to see some of those one goal losses from last year turn to multi-goal wins.
Coaches and asst coaches are being hired, athletes are preparing for a challenging preseason, fields are being prepared, clinics are executed, travel is arranged and schedules are finalized. But there is one area most participants forget about and that is umpire preparation.
The game is not possible without competent well trained umpires.The speed and wide ranging movement of the game demands fitness, as much as a deep understanding of the rules and skills of the players. There is a constant need for replacement, as older umpires retire. Recruitment and training is a key ingredient for a successful and safe experience for fans and athletes alike.
Sean Rapapport was recently appointed Head of Umpires for US Field Hockey and he gave a presentation to the Board of US Field Hockey describing his efforts on recruiting and training of umpires. He also described some points of concern he has as the sport expands.
In general he was pleased with the available talent and recently he used some of the more senior players at the Nexus tournament as umpires in the younger divisions. He was extraordinarily pleased with their performance and was encouraged with the hope when many of the athletes finish their playing careers, perhaps they might choose umpiring to stay connected to the game.
Officials attention on skills
He got into details on the use of certain skills and potential issues. As an experiment at Nexus, he took a random collection of 10 under 16 athletes and had the group execute a reverse stick. Remarkably, 8 out of the 10 would have been guilty of a back stick violation. He demonstrated using film show how an umpire can detect the back stick violation, confirming it with how the ball bounces after striking the stick.
It is that kind of detail which is included in the training of a new official, and a caution to coaches and players to execute skills according to the rules.
It is one of the many elements for a successful experience for fans, athletes and coaches, that umpires are prepared. Let the games begin!
The long wait is over and as I write this the schedule is published and allows us to plan our “field hockey treks” for this fall. The first competition is less than a month away and as I assess the schedule there will be some exciting hockey this fall with interesting and challenging opponents. The exhibition schedule opens at the beach on Aug 15 against a good Monmouth squad. Monmouth in recent years has changed conferences and their schedule has been beefed up in the process. They are a quick team that relies a lot on the fast break and will be a great preseason challenge for our rebuilding defense. Just 3 days later the challenges don’t get any easier as the Leopards host the Blue Hens of Delaware. They are always a tough opponent who will test our offense.
After that early preparation, Wagner comes to Rappolt Field a week later for the opening game of the season at night under the lights at 7pm. It will be time for the Buckeyes of Ohio State at our field that following Sunday at 3:30. We are the second game for Ohio State in the Valley as they will be playing Lehigh Friday afternoon. It will be interesting to see the comparative scores. I plan to attend both games.
The road beckons again on Friday the 1st of Sept as the Leopards will travel to Vermont for a first ever game with this team. They have a new field and are celebrating with a 12 game home schedule. The New England Labor Day weekend swing ends on Sunday with UMass at Amherst.
Spanns flies through the Crusader defense
The Schedule doesn’t get any easier as Friday will mark the ACC’s Syracuse University Orange return to Lafayette for a 6 pm game. Sunday the 10th it’ll be a trip to the BIG APPLE and the Columbia Lions who have been improving in the Ivy League.
The Patriot League opener arrives on our home field on Friday at 7pm as the Bison of Bucknell show up. This is a game the team should be looking forward to and the Leopards will look to avenge the one goal loss last year. This is always a competitive match and this year will be no exception. A win for either team launches the pathway to the post season and a trip the NCAA’s. Four wins against Patriot League opponents will be needed to make the League tournament. The regular season league winner will host.
We will catch our breath and get ready for 1pm Sunday and Fairfied ,who actually was a Patriot League member a decade ago. The first Saturday game for the Leopards will be against American in DC, home to many Field Hockey alums. The noon time game as always will be key to title hopes and hopes to host the PL tournament. The Leopards lost by one goal in overtime last year!!
Leneke Spanns speeds through the Terrier defense
The Patriot League will again be on our mind as Holy Cross comes to town the following Saturday at noon. The Crusaders always seems to get up for the Leopards!!
The Patriot League challenge continues the following Saturday, October 7 with Colgate. By the end of the game we should be able to plot our post season chances and what might be needed to be done to get there.
Twenty five hours later Drexel arrives as the Leopards will try avenge the one goals loss from last year. It’ll be back on the bus as our heroes make a second trip to New England, first meeting League rival Boston University who will want to avenge their 2 goal loss in Easton last year. They will playing on their resurfaced field.
The Leopards will stay in New England and after an overnight rest will meet the next challenge, the Provdence Friars at 1 pm. The last game with them ended in a loss, so this could be a very competitive game.
The schedule again switches to a Friday night game at 6:30 with Towson on the home turf to be shortly followed by a noon away game with Quinnipiac in Hamden CT. They will be under new coaching this season!!
Lineke Spanns loses the goalie on the way to a score
The Patriot League regular season ends appropriately with Lehigh at Lehigh. Lehigh has consecutive victories of late and this game regardless of the records, holds drama for each team. Lehigh will be the defending League champion. It will be a key contest in any case. It is a Oct 27 7 pm start that no doubt could define the season!
The regular season ends with a home game with Temple on Sunday at noon, hopefully with both teams looking at a post season! The PL tournament is Thursday November 2 and Saturday November 4th at the site of the regular season champion.
In 8 weeks the 2023 Lafayette Leopards Field Hockey squad will be arriving on campus to begin their fall season and their run at a Patriot League championship, and entry into the national NCAA Tournament. The schedule has not been published yet, but if past is prologue, it will include a number of quality out of conference games, but assuredly will have the six Patriot League games which will determine entry to the League tournament. I do have it on good authority, it will include a number of New England schools along with League rivals Boston University and Holy Cross. I have heard there is also at least one ACC school and most likely an Ivy League foe scheduled.
Coach Stone has been searching the world for top notch talent, and according to go leopards the new class will have new leopards from as close as Wayne Pa. to as far away as Europe. It includes one all American and a pair who have played on their national junior team.
They will join an experience and skilled veteran squad, who are playing this summer in US club teams and International club teams!! The Leopards just missed making the League playoffs despite their .500 league record. Featured games this year will be Lehigh ( last year’s league champion) at Lehigh, and a home contest with Bucknell. The DC trip to American will be looked forward to as will Colgate’s and Holy Cross’ home contest. Boston will host the Leopards on their new turf.
American University has published an article on their new class and Lehigh has listed without biographies their incoming fall class. Lafayette has listed their new class with biographies on the web page. I see no other Patriot League school with their classes revealed.
As posted in the go leopards website we start in order of their new jersey number.
Number 3 Emma Maher
Emma comes from Wayne, Pa. and graduated from Villa Maria. Villa Maria is known for producing terrific field hockey talent and Emma is no exception. Penciled in as forward this future economics major is described by her coaches as ” quick and feisty with a heart of gold while being a selfless teammate.” No stranger to on the field honors she was also noted for her excellence in the classroom. Emma also likes to sail boats and has been doing it since she was six.
Emma was recently selected to the Nexus high performance games by USAFH in Virginia Beach. I will be traveling there, and will have a first glance at her in action.
Number 4 Stella Malinowski
Stella hails from Vancouver BC. She attended Little Flowers academy. Her athletic accomplishments are numerous as she participated in soccer, volleyball, basketball, and field hockey. She was on the silver medal team in provincials. Aside from from her athletics skills she was a competitive dancer for eight years. We are all hoping she can help us dance our way into the post season. Welcome aboard Stella.
Number 6 Maddie Evans
Maddie was a four year starter at Servana Park a 4A state champion. She was also named to the 2021 national academic squad. She is no stranger to winning championships on any team she played on.She played with Freedom HKY. where was a Shooting Star Thanksgiving Champion, a JPOL Champion and top scorer. Aside from her athletic and academic accomplishments she created BE STRONG foundation in honor of her father to raise awareness for heart disease along with her brothers. It was named the largest youth fundraiser in the state of Maryland for the American Heart Association. In her off time she likes to fish, wakeboard, surf and ski.
Her aunt Jane Curry Michener played field hockey at Lafayette and her uncle Graham Michener played tennis as a Leopard.
Number 7 Ines Araujo
This future Psychology major comes from Sacred Heart Greenwich and may see action as a defender. She is a Riverside, Conn. native and like many of her future classmates is multi-sport athlete. ( field hockey, diving and ice hockey). She also is no stranger to championships and was first team selection in the FAA league. She is active in executive student council and serves as Eucharist Minister. She played on AGH club team where they place second in the NCC’s.
Number 11 Lea Good
Lea played her hockey at Oak Knoll while coming from Chatham, N.J. She was a starter in both ice hockey and field hockey for four years. She is penciled in as a midfielder. She was first team all county, a Max top 50 honoree, regional all American, second team national all American, Team MVP, first team all state, and First team National Invitational Tournament. She was selected for the u 16 junior Olympics.
While collecting all this hardware she is a volunteer at the St Joseph’s food bank and also be found at the Jersey shore in the summer. This August she will be found with her teammates getting ready at Metzgar!!
Number 12 Katie Gibb
Katie Gibb and Laine Delmonte
Katie already has played with a Leopard teammate. She and Laine Delmonte just played on the Under 21 Canadian National Team. She played her high school hockey at Point Grey Secondary and also like many of her classmates played ice hockey. She was captain of both teams. She was named athlete of the year 2018-2022. She has aspirations to play on the national Canadian team and perhaps she will follow Leopard Audrey Sawers who is now on the Canadian team.
We are all looking forward to her joining her other Leopards this fall and making an impact.
Number 15 Naomi George
Naomi lives in Surrey, England and went to St John’s School. A mid fielder, in field hockey she also showed her overall athleticism by competing in the triathlon. Championships are no stranger to Naomi as she was on the county and region championship for field hockey. She is the school champion and record holder for the triathlon. She was chosen for England Hockey’s performance center in 20,21,and 22.
Is there any doubt after swimming, biking and running that this athlete will star in preseason conditioning.
Number 23 Lena Thedrian
Their is no information yet on Lena and I could not find anything via other sources. We can assume this defender is a recruited athlete and has the quality of the others in this class. If anyone has any info, I will add it to this blog.
In their third competition of the spring season, ” The Rivalry” was renewed on Lafayette’s home field. Originally scheduled to be played at Lehigh, the meeting was rescheduled to Lafayette due to the fact that Lehigh’s watering system was broken.
From the first push off, this had the feeling of a regular season game. In fact, the Metzger weather cooperated by giving us a deja vu of conditions in the late season. A chilling wind blew in from the west forcing fans to wrap themselves in warm blankets, but the players on the field seemed to ignore it as they battled for all sixty minutes.
The first half was a back and forth affair as both sides had their chances. Each goalkeeper turned away multiple shots. Raffi Franomeni withstood several penalty corner chances and several follow up shots.
The second half was to see the Leopards take charge. Emma Garvey was to get her first minutes of the spring, and preserve the shut out. It was the offense, with some excellent mid field work that was to finally “break the ice.”
Midway, in the third quarter Lafayette was to get their chance with a penalty stroke. Alex Darrah delivered and the Maroon was to go up 1-0. The team became energized, and Catalina Rubel was to deliver two more goals, the first off a left side base line circle entry and putting a hard sweep into the far corner. Later on she was to add to her first goal by receiving an Ellie Barton pass, after Barton carried it on the right side baseline, finding Cata at the stroke line, who touched it into the goal.
The last goal of the day was delivered by Hannah Findley during a penalty corner on a sweep from the left side into the far corner!!
The leopards were aided by some outstanding play in the field. Peyton Guinter thrilled with a nice interception, Mackenzie Hall made her self known on mutiple occasions, while Hoefnagel and and van Wiik were solid in the midfield. Spanns was a threat all evening while Darrah and Findley found themselves open on several attacking opportunities. India Ralph looked comfortable directing the defense from her center back spot!!
Although a sparse crowd, both Lehigh and Lafayette parents retreated to the warmth of their cars to watch the game but there were brave souls wrapped in blankets who were to lend their support to both sides from the sideline.
I benefited from standing next to several senior players, but was especially appreciative of Felicitas Hannes who provide her expert observations of the action on the field.
The last competition of the spring will be at Lafayette this Saturday at noon against Drexel!
Lest I be accused of being a “homer,” I sampled some opinion from some of the fans at the spring game with Temple last night. Yes, some were parents, who no one can expect to be unbiased, but there were alumni, fans and others in attendance. The consensus was this team is improving and beginning to show some real personality.
Temple is a competitive team and one of those that Lafayette lost to by one goal last year! One parent was pleased to see some real growth in their daughter’s confidence and skills. One alumna said there seems to be some real skill on this team which was revealed in the shoot out at the end of the game. I saw real reason for confidence in the play our goalkeeper, perhaps the result of the coaching received from our newest assistant.
The details of the evening reveal even more. The game was played like a regular game, four quarters with officials ( but no instant replay review). Both teams had small benches due to lack of graduating seniors and incoming freshman. Lafayette had two players missing who are playing in the junior Pan Am games in Barbados, and a small number of injured sideline players.
Temple started the scoring with a goal in the first quarter, followed shortly thereafter with a goal by Carly Kreytak. The score stayed knotted until the second half when Temple opened up a two goal lead. Lafayette started their comeback on the shoulders of Lineke Spaans, who brought the Leopards within one with a slashing sprint to the goal and a reverse stick shot. The tie was delivered by Californian Mackensie Hall who dug out the ball during a scrum in front of the Temple keeper, and delivering it to the back of the cage.
Lafayette easily won the shoot out which in season would give the Leopards the win. After a first half that showed some tentative passing, the team seemed to come alive in the last 20 minutes. The passing became crisp and hard. There was less finesse, and more confidence and power in their play…all characteristics needed in the regular season.
Coach Stone had seen improvement by many players in the scrimmage last week at Monmouth with Rutgers, and to my mind and observation, much of that came together in second half against Temple.
As an aside we could see in the distance, ground has been broken as reconstruction of Metzger Field is beginning with a new soccer venue. Eventually, the refurbishment will include an upgrading for Lacrosse and Field Hockey.
The Leopards will travel to Delaware next Saturday for a playday format with Delaware, Drexel, Temple, St. Joe’s, Columbia and Bucknell.
Lafayette College Field Hockey 