Saturday, February 13
Davidson, N.C.
2:00 p.m.
Davidson College Athletics
vs
Limestone (exh.)
seniors (l-r): Haley Cook, Michele Pav, Emily Rahill and Jen Crawford
Davidson Lax Ready for 2010; Opens up Season With Exhibition vs. Limestone
2/11/2010 1:35:28 PM | Women's Lacrosse
Gavin McFarlin -- Assistant SID
DAVIDSON, N.C. — The Davidson women's lacrosse team is set and ready for the 2010 season as they begin a new chapter in the program history this weekend.
Davidson opens up the 2010 season with a scrimmage against Limestone at 2 p.m. at the Belk Turf Field on Saturday. The new season will also see the Wildcats join the newly formed conference, the National Lacrosse Conference, with Detriot Mercy, Howard, Longwood, Presbyterian, Jacksonville and Liberty.
In anticipation of the 2010 season, below is a look at the Season Preview....
Heading into their second season under head coach Kim Wayne, the 2010 lacrosse squad looks to improve on the 6-10 campaign a year ago. The Wildcats graduated five seniors, but bring back a strong core from last year's squad, including four of their five top scorers.
At the helm with Wayne will be three senior captains: Jen Crawford, Michelle Pav and Haley Cook. The 'Cats will rely upon their leadership and experience to assimilate nine freshmen into the mix this spring.
“Our four seniors are leaders both on the field and off, and have helped our ten newcomers transition themselves from the high school level to the collegiate level,” said Wayne. “When you combine 10 newcomers with 10 returning players you never know what you're going to get. I'm thankful that our returning players did such a great job bringing the team together this fall.”
Midfielders
With Crawford and Cook holding down starting spots at midfield, the 'Cats will have plenty of senior leadership. The two seniors along with Alanna Parker, Lindsay Cooper, Erin McGuire and Taylor Ketcham will bring added depth to the midfield line-up.
Crawford (30) and Cook (27) teamed up last season for a combined 57 goals and assisted on another 11 together. Crawford enters her senior season with two 30-goal campaigns and 85 career scores in all. The senior also added 24 groundballs, second-best on the team, and a team-high 12 caused turnovers last year.
Cook is closely behind Crawford, with 77 career goals and one 30-goal season. She converted on 13-of-19 free position shots on her way to a 27-goal junior season. Cook was also a force on draw controls, gathering in a team-high 27.
Erin Keitel tallied five goals in her first collegiate start before tearing her ACL just two games into the season. She is fully recovered and will make an immediate impact on the attack/midfield line with her impressive footwork and stick skills. These three midfielders have proven their offensive powers in seasons past, but Wayne also acknowledges their strong presence on the defensive end.
Additionally, Wayne will look to junior transfer Taylor Ketcham and freshmen Parker, Cooper and McGuire to spend some quality time in the midfield.
“Alanna , Lindsay and Erin were recruited for their speed, tenacity and hustle,” said Wayne. “They have a keen understanding of the game and will do whatever it takes to bring home a conference championship.”
Attackers
“One of the most exciting things about this year is our depth on the attacking end and in the midfield,” said Wayne. “We have seven strong attackers who will look to fight for a starting position.”
The attacking group is six deep, but on the young side with three of them being freshmen.
Sophomore Jenna Mugele was fifth on the team with 17 points on 15 goals (tied for fourth-best) and a pair of assists in her first season. She will look to regain her starting position after her name was etched in the lineup card 12 of the 16 games.
Veteran senior Emily Rahill will look to become a force from behind the cage with sophomore Anna Smith, both of whom have great crease dodging abilities. Rahill in her first season a year ago, tallied six goals in 14 games.
Smith, like Mugele, stepped right in as a freshman and shined from the start. She was fourth on the team with 18 points on 15 goals and three assists, all the while starting 14 of the 'Cats' 16 games. She also was one of the main 'Cats to win the draw control, picking up 20.
The attacking unit will be rounded out by freshmen Alexandra DeFrancesch, Keena Classen and Jessica Palfrey. All three come from strong lacrosse regions of New York and Maryland.
“Losing Erin Keitel and then Becky Horton to injuries last year was a shock for everyone on the team, but we were able to pull together and stay strong,” said Wayne. “It gave attackers such as Rahill, Anna and Jenna a chance to step up and shine. There is nothing more difficult than being a freshmen who is put in a position where you have no choice but to step up. Having already been through that last year has helped mature this attacking unit. On the flip side, we have added four new attackers who will bring a different look to our attack. Ali and Keena will be counted on to handle any ball that comes their way. With stick skills as good as theirs, they will be looked upon to feed the ball inside to cutting attackers.”
Defenders
The Wildcat defense returns five of their seven defenders, including goalkeeper Michelle Pav, from last year's squad.
“I can't say enough about our defensive unit,” said Wayne. “With Pav leading the way, we have seven defenders who will fight for starting positions. Junior Lily Graham has stepped into the leadership role ever since her breakout year in 2009. She is a leader by example and has done a tremendous job helping the freshmen this past fall. Lauren Van Husen has always had a strong vocal presence on the field, and despite missing the fall season, she came back in January fired up and ready to go. Stella Davis is one of the most consistent players in the unit and will look to regain her starting position.”
Pav along with Van Husen and Graham will anchor the backfield. Van Husen started 11 of her 12 games with 16 groundballs and seven caused turnovers, tied for fourth on the team. Graham started all 16 games with eight groundballs and five caused turnovers, along with 10 draw controls.
Joining Van Husen and Graham is fellow junior classmate Davis. The junior, who started in all 16 games and tallied her first career goal in a season-ending win over Presbyterian, was one of three Wildcats to have 20 groundballs.
The addition of freshmen Erin McGuire, Abigail Doelger and Morgan Tarrant have proven to be crucial to the success of this program.
The final layer of the defense are senior goaltender Michelle Pav and freshman goaltender Jessica Melby. After gaining much experience during her first two seasons as a 'Cat, Pav had a breakout junior campaign with career highs of 130 saves and 16 games started. Pav's ability to step to the ball is her biggest strength and Davidson is looking forward to her dominant presence between the pipes in her final season this spring.
Melby has done a tremendous job using this year as a learning experience. She has already improved her game and will continue to work even harder to push Pav to her limits.
The schedule
Davidson will open the season with three of its first four games at home, starting on Feb. 13 against Limestone. Also visiting over that time will be Detroit Mercy, the Wildcats' first league game in the newly formed National Lacrosse Conference, and Navy.
A trip to California sees the 'Cats battle Stanford and California, Mar. 2-4, before coming home to face St. Francis (Pa.), Lafayette and Longwood in three of its next four games.
Of the 'Cats remaining 10 games after its return trip from California, five of them will be against NLC foes as Davidson returns to a conference for the first time since playing in the American Lacrosse Conference for four years, 2002-05. Joining Davidson in the conference is Detroit Mercy, Howard, Longwood, Presbyterian, Jacksonville and Liberty. Of those teams, the Wildcats have faced three of them during their 16-year history. Liberty and Jacksonville are both starting up new lacrosse program's this year.
Davidson has the second-best record from a season ago entering the new league, right behind Longwood, which went 11-6 and defeated the Wildcats 10-5 last March 21.
Other non-conference games for the Wildcats include matchups against Virginia Tech, Duke and American, which all come toward the end of the season. The Blue Devils advanced to the second-round of the NCAA Tournament and finished 15-6 overall.
The inaugural NCL Tournament will be held at Longwood in Farmville, Va., Apr. 29-May 2.
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