Tag: Women's sports

Leopards Land On Top Against Bucknell In Overtime Thriller 2-1

It’s a full house of 500 fans

In an evening of very high level and intense hockey, Katie Gibb, and Kiley Gallagher, along with Lena Thedrian, providing two crucial assists, the Leopards delivered another overtime thriller to 501 fans. Never to be counted out, Lafayette fought through 3 periods of pretty even hockey, to finally tie it up with 6 and 1/2 minutes left in the game. It was a penalty corner and a rocket delivered by Thedrian, that found Katie Gibb in front of the goal, who responded with a much needed tip in.

Until then, it was Bucknell’s Reese Czajkowski, with a Gianna Purorro assist on penalty corner of their own at 20:24, that provided Bucknell with the single digit lead. The game had all the feel of a championship effort, and the timing of the equalizer provided the faithful a chance to appreciate the heart of this team.

But tying the score would not be enough, as the game moved to overtime. Bucknell faced a two player shortage in the opening moments of overtime due to two late green cards. For most fans, it seemed that would have sealed the deal, but the Bison’s made it through and at 5 1/2 minutes the Leopards delivered the deciding blow with Kiley Gallagher finding a looping assist from the ever present Lena Thedrian ( who played 64 minutes) ending the game 2-1.

Excitement throughout the game was also provided by Josephine van Wijk, who was limited to 27 minutes nursing a practice injury, but managed to provide one on one penetration to the circle, dribbling through an aggressive defense featuring her strong stick skills.

Again, Lafayette provided a plethora of thrills by the whole team, demonstrating courage and fitness that has captured the appreciation of their many fans.

Having to fight back Lafayette won the tale of the statistics with shots 12-10 (7 coming in the forth and overtime periods) and they out cornered their opponents 4-3 ( Bucknell’s corners were all in the first half). Fragomeni had another solid performance in the cage with four big saves!!

The team will receive their championship rings from last year and be honored at the football game on Saturday. Sunday they will meet Dartmouth at home, in pursuit of their 7th win and travel next Friday to American!!

Leopards Pounce On Lions In 2 OT Win

It’s a full house of 700 fans

You would think an overtime time win filled with drama and action would be easy to write, but as I type this I find it hard to convey how this was a team effort! Yes there were some individual heroics, which I will describe later, but I want to leave the reader with the impression of how much every player, and every coach, contributed to the outcome…there were no small efforts this afternoon.

Penn State opened the afternoon ranked 16th in the nation. The Leopards had just won an important league game at Lehigh two days before. From the first push off, there was every indication to the capacity level fans in attendance that they were going to be treated to a special event.

The first quarter saw Penn State fend off the first attack and shot by Lafayette’s Lea Good at 1:24 into the contest. However, it only took the Lions 6 minutes to first challenge the Leopards, with a penalty corner which was blocked. The Leopards quickly responded by clearing the ball up field, and earning a corner of their own 30 seconds later. Lena Thedrian, with an assist by Lea Good and Katie Gibb delivered a hard shot to the lower right hand corner putting Lafayette up 1-0. It was then revealed that this was to be no ordinary contest

Lena Thedrian delivers the strike to open Leopard scoring

The Leopards were to lead in shots 3-2 in the first quarter as Penn State was to redouble efforts to get control from their opponents. Raffi Fragomeni was to collect two saves in that half and five during regular time. But at 21:04 Penn State was to even the score as they found an opening to tie the score which was to hold up til the end of the half. The Leopards were to turn away several later attacks and press the Lions on there on. The defensive penalty corner team was especially effective turning away three corners.

The third quarter showed no slowing of action as Penn State was to get 2 more shots and the Leopards responding with one of their own. One shot was to be a penalty stroke which was earned on an unlucky foot penalty during a defense in front of the goal. It was 2-1 at that point.

Fatigue was beginning to show in the fourth quarter as cards were being issued to both sides. However, even then, Lafayette looked in better shape. Lafayette used 11 substitutes and Penn State used 7. Coach Stone was to pull her goalie with five minutes to go as Maddie Evans came in for Fragomeni, With 45 seconds left in regulation time, Lafayette earned a corner. Penn State asked for a video review which was unsuccessful. Stella Malinowski had taken the shot. In a scrambled melee in front of the goal Lauren Kurek found the ball and delivered the tying goal with 37 seconds left on the clock.

Fragomeni returned for the final seconds and we went to overtime.

Fragomeni and the defense was outstanding as, during the two overtimes they turned away six Penn State shots which included a five minute period of working off a 5 minute penalty corner suffered by Stella Malinowski. Kiley Gallagher was especially active as was Josephine van Wijk who was able to penetrate the defensive end of Penn State challenging them. The working off of the yellow card was heroic and seemed to inspire the team and their fans!! Penn State was to get off six shots but only earned one corner which was successfully defended. Lafayette had 3 shots and 2 corners.

The game went to a shoot out. Stella Malinowski got the first goal and Penn State got their first after a retry. All the subsequent shots by Lafayette and Penn State were missed or turned away. Raffi Fragomeni was to show her experience by aggressively turning away three shots and swiping away the ball. On the fifth try by Lafayette’s Lea Good, she connected. Penn State’s Joji Purdy was cut off by Fragomeni on their last try and the team stormed the senior goalkeeper in celebrating the win.

Fragomeni Is The Bomb In 2-0 Shutout Of Drexel

If there is goalkeeper that had a better weekend let me know. Raffi Fragomeni had two shutouts, and each day she had to defend against a penalty stroke…dispatching both, preserving the shutouts. Today against Drexel she had…count them ….9 saves preserving her perfect weekend.

Drexel, who is favored to win the CAA this year, did not go down easily, taking 15 shots, and earning 7 corners. Lafayette’s young and deep team was up to the task. They made their shots count and use their extraordinary depth to bring in the win.

The Leopards had 6 shots, and two of them found the back of the cage. The first came at 37:03 into the game after a scoreless first half. Sophomore Laila Pasic delivered, with the assist from captain and senior Mackenzie Switzer. The ball was delivered from the right side across the goal mouth and picked up by Pasic who got her first goal of the year. She was scoring goals all preseason, and finally delivered one that counted!!

A 1-0 lead did not seem enough as Drexel pressed to try to even the score. That 3rd period saw the Dragons get 5 penalty corners to 2 from the Leopards Drexel also had 8 shots to 3. It was at 39:37 that Drexel looked as though they might tie things up when they were awarded a penalty stroke…mere feet away… the stroker did her best, and Fragomeni batted it away. It was the turning point.

Lauren Kurek gets first goals of career
Lauren Kurek get first goal of her career

The fourth period saw no shots for Drexel but two for Lafayette. There were no penalty corners for either side. The victory was sealed by freshman Lauren Kurek who got her first goal of her career at 47:25 into the game. The Leopards then used their depth using 20 players to wear down the very game Drexel Dragons.

Feline Reusken competes for the ball

Lafayette is now 2-0, having dispatched two preseason favorites to win the NEC and CAA respectively. They will play Longwood (1-1) on Friday who lost to Richmond 0-3 and beat Queens 3-1 and Sunday will travel to Williamsburg to meet William and Mary on Sunday at noon. They are 0-2 having lost to American and Old Dominion.

Leopards Handle The Stags For Opening Day Win

Raffi is a wall against Fairfield

Opening day is always a nervous affair. Both teams were champions of their respective conferences and picked to repeat. So aside from the normal incentive to add a “W” to the record, each team was sort of defending the honor of the Patriot League and the Northeast Conference respectively . Both were in the NCAA playoffs and lost to their opponent by one goal.

Lafayette’s DPC sprints to meet Fairfield

Lafayette countered everything Fairfield threw at them and some individual and team heroics resulted in a 2-0 early season win. Although outshot 16-10 and out cornered 8-2 the Leopards always came with a solution.

The opening goal happened at 9;07 into the game with Josephine van Wick teaming up with Linda Nova who delivered a deflection into the cage past the Fairfield goalie. The first quarter saw the Stags out shooting the Leopards 4-1 and it was up to Lafayette goaltender, Raffi Fragomeni to demonstrate why she was selected as preseason goalkeeper of the year. The second period, the Leopards turned it around by outshooting the Stags 3-7. and the Stags countered with more aggressive play however, resulting in a penalty stroke at 20:33 delivered by Captain Stella Malinowski. That made the score 2-0 which would hold until the end.

Stella Malinowski receives appreciation from her teammates

Lafayette could not coast for the rest of the game as Fairfield was to renew and refresh their efforts with a 7-1 margin in shots in the third quarter and a 4-0 stretch in penalty corners. It required defensive heroics, including a defensive save by Lena Thedrian to preserve the shutout at the end.

At 54:47 Fairfield pulled their goalkeeper, but Lafayette’s defense held strong, and was to prevail despite a yellow card on Lafayette’s van Wijk.

Lafayette unloads a shot

Lafayette’s depth was a factor using 20 players during the game while Fairfield only used 15. The crowd’s official count was 317 bolstered by the men’s lacrosse team.

There will be no rest for the weary as Drexel will come to town, the preseason favorite in the CAA.

An editorial Comment

Last night American beat up on William and Mary 10-0 and Syracuse rolled over Loch Haven 15-0. Although both teams seem to have been substituting liberally, I don’t think either outcome demonstrates any sportsmanship, or helps the game in general. ( American’s goalkeeper was in the whole 60 minutes) American will face Duke on Sunday and Syracuse will play Fairfield.

Coach Jennifer Stone To Be At Lafayette Event In Bucks County On March 7

The Marquis de Lafayette visited the United States in 1824 as a guest of President James Monroe. While in Philadelphia, 200 Eastonians including James Madison Porter met him. He was so impressed he set off to work to establish a College in Lafayette’s name. A group of prominent citizens led by Porter met at White’s Hotel to begin the process.

On March 9,1826 the governor of Pennsylvania signed the charter officially establishing Lafayette College. Each year on or around March 9, alumni get together at parties all over the world to celebrate their alma mater and toast the Marquis.

This year there will be an event on March 7 at the Bucks Club, 2600 York Road , Jamison, Pa. 18929. It will be a cash bar with small food. The highlight will be the attendance of Head Field Hockey Coach Jennifer Stone. The Field Hockey team could rightly be called the most successful team at Lafayette. They are regular participants in the annual Patriot League tournament and as champions represented the Patriot League in the national NCAA tournament.

This year, the team had a league leading, 5 all Patriot League awardees including an All American selection, Leneke Spanns. National teams are no stranger to Lafayette athletes as the captain of the US Olympic team will have alumna Amanda (Magadan) Golini leading the squad in this year’s Paris Olympics. Alumna Audrey Sawers is a member of the Canadian National Team. There are currently 3 players on the squad who were selected to the under 21 Canadian national team.

There is no doubt next year’s team will be in the hunt for a championship!!

The event is from 5:30 to 7:30. The host is Bill Messick class of ’68 Messy12@aol.com. You can also contact Alumni Engagement at 610-330-5040 or alumni @lafayette.com to make a reservation!! See you there.

Darrah Does It In 3-1 Win Over The Friars

Alex Darrah is on defense closely defending

Over the course of a season, success is often the result of a variety of team members stepping up to the challenge. One of those is Alex Darrah, who today scored two goals against a very talented and aggressive Big East opponent, Providence College. Alex was all over the field and was a key contributor on both sides of the field. The midfielder/ forward has gotten better and stronger as the season progressed, and is now a key contributor for the Leopards.

Both of Darrah’s goals came with an assist from Leneke Spaans who had 3 shots on goal along with her goal at 58:08 as an insurance strike. Alex Darrah had her first goal at 16:20 deflecting a Spaans’ pass at the left post. The second goal came after a Providence goal at 42:02 which tied the score. Alex’s goal came only 1 1/2 minutes later to put the Leopards ahead for good.

Lena Thedrian was a strong factor on defense

It was a total team effort, and there was clearly a 110 pct effort on the field. Names like Thedrian, Switzer, Good, come to mind but it would be hard to leave out every member of this squad who put together a perfect weekend and their 5th straight win. The bench was factor as the intensity grew. There were six Lafayette players who came off the bench and had an appearance in the game, compared to only three from the Friars. Ariel Schumacher had a shot and Catalina Rubel had 30 productive minutes.

Coaching staff instructs during quarter breaks

Emma Garvey got her 3rd straight win with a 78 pct save percentage on the season.

The Leopards were rewarded by receiving a 30th and 31st national ranking by Field Hockey corner. Next week will be a bye week with games against Quinipiac and Towson. There’s a lot to be proud of, and the coaching staff has to be very pleased with more to come!!!.

******. Late last night using the official boxscore they had Alex Darrah with the second goal of the game. This morning it was changed to have Leneke Spaans with the goal. So Leneke had two goals against Providence which combined with her goal against Boston pushed her to the PL offensive player of the week.

Alex had a terrific game and my impressions stand!!!

Go Pards!!!

Spaans Connects For The Game Winner And The Defense Contains For PL Win Over BU

Spaans blows by BU defender

The Leopards defense contained the BU offense for most of the game. While neither team could score in the first half, BU could not even get to the shooting circle. But it was a Leneke Spaans’ early second half goal that was to put the Leopards on top for the rest of the game.

The swift Leopard quickly and unexpectedly took a restart and rocketed a shot from the top of the circle at 31:25. That was to stand up until the end of the game. Lafayette’s defense was to stand tall and turn away the Terrier offense early and often.

They were to intercept passes, tackle with authority, and switch fields with great skill. Lena Thedrian, along with Mackenzie Switzer were all over the field making tackles, and moving the ball to the the offense. Stella Malinowski showed the ability that made her Rookie of the Week. Lea Good was in the face of Boston offensive players while dribbling past defenders. Spaans flew around the Boston defense almost at will as they were stymied by her speed and skill.

Garvey has second shut out in front of NE fans!!

Emma Garvey recorded her second shutout stopping two key shots in the second half as the Terriers started to tilt the field in their favor.

Lea Good shrugs off close pressure by a BU defender

The Leopards had to overcome a green card on India Ralph at the beginning of the fourth quarter. As the clock ran down, Leneke used her considerable stick skills in running out the clock at the corner of the field.

Mackensie Hall breaks free

Lafayette is now 7-5 overall and 4-1 in Patriot League play. They will await the results of the last PL games to see were they will be seeded in the PL tournament. The last PL game will be with Lehigh in two weeks as they enter a League bye week.

Tomorrow they will meet a tough Providence team!!

Are We Prepared For The Season Only 20 Days Away?

Sean Rapapport

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!

Leopards Find Their Offense In 4-3 Win Against Richmond On Senior Day

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Seniors Felicitas Hannes, Sydney Woolston, and Simone Hefting played key roles in a 4-3 Senior Day win against the Spiders of Richmond University. In a back and forth game during a threatening cold, cloudy day, Sydney Woolston opened a lead with a goal at 5:42 in the first quarter. It was Sydney’s third goal in as many games on 4 shots taken. With seconds left in the same period Richmond took a rebound with midfielder Regan McCrossan knotting he score at 1-1.

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Leopard senior Felicitas Hannes duplicated the feat with a rebound from of her own putting Leopards up 2-1 at 19:01 in the second quarter. However, again with six seconds left in the half Richmond was to tie score at 2-2 with a reverse from the left side.

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Junior Emma Garvey took over goal tending duties in the second half. Hannes was to again be in the action by passing to first year player Catalina Rubel putting the Leopards ahead again, 13 minutes into the third quarter. The lead to was last eight minutes as Lindsey Frank found the back of the goal tying the game once more in the forth quarter.

The game winning heroics were reserved for senior Simone Hefting assisted by Hannah Findlay and Lineke Spaans who scored 6 1/2 minutes to go in the game. In addition, Captain Hefting was to have a defensive save doing the game. The Leopards accumulated 12 shots, resulting in 4 goals, 3 assists and 3 corners during the match.

It was a day of mixed emotions as we realized these seniors were playing their last games as a Leopards. However, they showed their mettle and character by not getting down and playing hard to the end. It also demonstrated the strong bench of the Leopards as 8 bench players saw significant action.

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After the game, the team, parents and friends were treated with a post game party where memories and gifts were exchanged to make the day more memorable.

Lafayette has games to play with three PL opponents as well as sixth ranked Penn State and Drexel next week end. Yale at Yale is also scheduled as the regular season closes.

Lafayette Veterans McAndrew, Woolston And Hefting Lead Leopards In Last Tune Up Of The Season

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The Albany Great Danes proved to be a perfect opponent for the last competition of the preseason. Albany loves to press and are very fast and skilled. It required the Leopards to up the pace of their game, make definite speedier passes, and quicken their decision making. The veteran defense of Woolston and Hefting were up to the challenge as they turned away much of the aggressive Dane attack in the first half.

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The Lafayette offense on the other hand took longer to adjust, and especially for our first year players, it was a early season baptism. The half time score was 0-0 as Lafayette’s defense held off Albany’s offense. However, the Leopards had a difficult time mounting a counter attack.

The third quarter showed more scoring action. It seemed as though Simone Hefting scored on a looping shot that banged off the goal’s backboard early but was called back by the officials. Albany then scored two quick goals only to be answered by a deflection by Sydney Woolston during a corner. In the overtime period, Molly McAndrew scored the lone goal. Lafayette clearly won the shootout with McAndews adding another and Josephine Van Wik scoring one right behind her. Leneke Spanns added an additional goal!!

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The day was hot, and the trip was a long one, and I have to admit the Leopards looked a little fatigued. Coach Stone used the opportunity to get a look at all her players that were available as Catalina Rubel made her first appearance of the preseason. Freshman Goal Keeper Rafi Fragomeni made several key saves in the first half.

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Coach Stone gives helpful advice to Leneke Spanns

Friday is the first game of the regular season as Temple arrives in Easton. First games are always difficult to handicap, as both teams will be trying to get off on a strong start for the season. Temple will be ready as no doubt will Lafayette.

As this is orientation week, hopefully there will be a strong showing in the stands by our newest Leopard students.

More about Temple later this week as “excitement” builds!!