Tag: women’s lacrosse

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Lacrosse Sports Women

Female rookie of the year

By Ajan Caneda

Staff Writer

In her first game, against No. 5 Duke, first-year lacrosse player Arriana Sajjad ’15 proved that she could compete against the country’s elite. The game was only the first indication of Sajjad’s ability to be a force for the Bison.

Her offensive savvy and dedication in practice are admired by her teammates and head coach, Randall Goldsborough.

“She is constantly pushing her teammates to improve and perform which in turn helps her learn how to lead both on and off the field. She works extremely hard in each drill every day which has helped her become a very consistent player,” Goldsborough said. “I expect that she will be one of the top players in the nation before she graduates in three years.”

Sajjad certainly showed that she is ready to live up to that challenge when she faced Duke in her first collegiate game, scoring two of her team’s three goals against one of the formidable defenses in the country. In the Bison’s next game, she posted another two goals in a loss against No. 17 Penn State. Despite the losses, she gained valuable experience against two of the best teams in the country and solidified her spot in the starting lineup for the rest of the season.

“Arriana is not easily intimidated and lives for a challenge, even though she is one of the youngest accomplished players in our league,” Goldsborough said. “We played Duke, and she scored two goals against an All-American goalie and one of the top ranked defenses in the country. Since then, she has continued to gain confidence in her abilities and is one of the top players in the league.”

At this point in the season, Sajjad is the leading scorer on her team with 38 goals, along with 51 points, in 17 games. Her most impressive performance was against Liberty on March 21, where she posted a career-high six goals, including the game-winner in overtime. This, followed by a five-goal showing against conference rival American, led to her being named the Susquehanna Valley Limousine Bison Athlete of the Week.

“Liberty was just an amazing upset and, most importantly, it showed us that we are truly incredible and strong when we play together as a team,” she said. “To come back from being down by nine and winning in overtime was a huge confidence boost for us, and that really showed how capable we are.”

Despite her individual accolades, she remains humble and remembers the guidance her coaches have provided, along with the bond she has with her teammates.

“My coaches and teammates, especially the upperclassmen, have been extremely patient with me when I made mistakes and unbelievably supportive of all my accomplishments, as they are with everyone on the team,” she said. “They have taught me a lot and made me into a more mature, team player. Also, I am incredibly close with my freshman class, and I could not be more fortunate and thankful to have come into a team with this group of girls. They are my support net and best friends and our friendship made all the difference in my transition.”

Teammate Katelyn Miller ’14 has recognized Sajjad’s emergence as a player and leader, which includes adding new dimensions to her already solid repertoire.

“In the beginning of the season, Arriana was playing only attack and was put in mainly a cutting position. Throughout the season she has been diversified by playing some midfield and being a double threat on attack by being a great cutter and driver,” Miller said. “I think she matured a lot through the first couple months and has been able to come up big in tight situations by helping in transition, winning the draw or taking it to goal when we are down.”

In the Orange and Blue’s game against Binghamton on April 14, she scored three times in her ninth multi-goal game of the season. Her efficient scoring stems from her consistent accuracy; she has a 77.2 shot-on-goal percentage. The effort she puts in practice is mirrored on the field, as she has also recovered 58 draw controls.

As the regular season concludes, Sajjad is looking towards the postseason and focused on continuing to improve. She remains optimistic about the direction the team is going in, while her motivation to compete in the Patriot League tournament fuels her sensational play.

“Our juniors and sophomores have really stepped up this season to fulfill this leadership role and they’ve done a great job so far handling all of us freshman. We also have a large incoming class to look forward to that will push us to become better, so it’s only up from here,” she said. “Personally, for the rest of the season and next year, I am looking to stay mentally strong and make smarter decisions with the ball on the offensive end. For next season I would definitely want to see us competing in the Patriot League Championships. That may seem like a little bit of a jump, but I know we’ll get there. That’s definitely my ultimate goal. We’ve improved so much this season and only continue to get stronger.”

Her work ethic and perseverance embody the prestigious Bison athletic tradition. Sajjad looks to accomplish a lot during her next three years, and she is on her way to becoming one of the best players, not only in the Patriot League, but in the nation.

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Lacrosse Sports Women

Women’s lacrosse ends season with split

By Ajan Caneda
Writer

Behind a four-goal performance from Madison Hurwitz ’13, the women’s lacrosse team pulled off a 21-9 victory at home last Tuesday against Howard as it closed out the season with a 5-12 overall record. Arriana Sajjad ’15 ended the regular season with 38 goals and 51 points, both first-year records.

After some slow starts this season, the Bison were motivated to pull ahead early. Five different players scored the first five goals for the Orange and Blue. Hurwitz, off assists from Katelyn Miller ’14 and Molly Ford ’14, then nailed two straight goals that gave the Bison a 7-2 lead. The active passing kept Howard out of reach, as Lindsey Ferro ’14 had two straight assists that led to goals from Emily Kookogey ’15 and Sajjad. The Bison were ahead 11-4 at halftime.

The offense continued to dominate as it went on to score five more goals in the first 12 minutes of the second half, including one from Carly Downs ’15, her first of the season. Howard answered with two goals of its own to pull back within 10. But the Orange and Blue would end all hopes of a comeback with goals from Downs and Blair McDonald ’15. Claire Doyle ’15 scored her first career goal at the 0:28 remaining mark, while Sajjad ended the game with another goal.

Sajjad, Miller and Kookegey each finished with hat tricks, and four players had three assists each. But it was not all offense, as the Bison also forced 25 turnovers.

Last Saturday, a 7-0 Colgate run made all the difference, as the Orange and Blue fell to the Raiders 15-8 at home, preventing them from picking up what would have been their first conference win. Sajjad and Miller both posted half tricks in the loss.

Miller opened the game with a goal for the Bison, but Colgate went on a 4-0 run after that initial goal. Sajjad scored two goals within two minutes that cut the deficit to 4-3. Colgate then showcased its streaky offense by nailing four unanswered goals to end the half.

“Colgate is a very polished team. Many of the players are very experienced and have been selected to the All-League team in the past and this season as well,” head coach Randall Goldsborough said. “We did give the ball up many times on the attacking end in the first half with many of those turnovers leading to fast break goals for them.”

The run continued with three straight Colgate goals to start the second half. The Raiders kept the Bison from making a run of their own, holding them to two goals in the first 27 minutes of the half. The offense came too late for the Orange and Blue, who scored four of the last five goals in the game.

“We have the talent. We just need to continue to build our confidence, and that is what we will be focusing on in the fall,” Goldsborough said.

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Lacrosse Sports Women

Women’s lax wins by two

By Ajan Caneda
Writer

Katelyn Miller ’14 posted four goals last Saturday to power the women’s lacrosse team to a 16-12 victory at Binghamton. The win ended a four-game losing streak for the Bison.

Along with tough defense, the Orange and Blue had a balanced offense that allowed them to pull off another come-from-behind win.

“Everyone came into the game fired up and played to win,” Molly Ford ’14 said. “We implemented a new sub rotation that allowed us to get more speed and aggression from defensive-minded players on our rides and clears and attack-minded players into the offense.”

After Binghamton scored two goals in the opening minutes of the game, Ford scored a goal off an assist from Arriana Sajjad ’15. The Bison got off to a slow start, though, as the Bearcats grabbed an early 5-1 lead. Sajjad then nailed two goals as part of a 3-0 run, and by halftime, the game was tied at 7-7.

Binghamton committed 13 fouls in the first half, while the Bison forced eight turnovers that gave them momentum going into the second half.

Midfielder Sophie Kleinert ’14 scored an unassisted goal five minutes into the second half, giving the Orange and Blue their first lead of the game. Subsequent goals by Ryan Wenk ’13 and Sajjad extended the lead to three.

Binghamton would not go away as two Bearcat goals narrowed the deficit to one. Following a goal by Miller, two more Bearcats scored to knot the game at 11-11. Both teams went scoreless for nearly seven minutes before midfielder Blair McDonald ’15 capitalized on a free position shot to break the tie. The Bison didn’t keep the lead for long as the Bearcats evened the score to 12-12 with 8:57 left in the game. But Miller nailed two goals that sparked a 4-0 Bison run to seal the victory.

“We learned from the Lafayette game how important clock management was in the end of the game, especially when the game was tied,” Miller said. “You could see by watching that everyone on the field really wanted the win and left everything on the field to the last second, and it clearly paid off.”

Sajjad continued her offensive tear, scoring three goals and adding one assist. Emily Kookogey ’15, Ford, and McDonald had two goals each. Goalie Caroline O’Neill ’15 made key defensive stops down the stretch and finished with seven saves.

The Bison will be looking to pick up their first conference victory as they return home to face Colgate on Saturday at 1 p.m.

“We are focused on getting out first Patriot League win against Colgate. We need to carry our fire and confidence from Saturday over into that game,” Ford said.

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Lacrosse Sports Women

Women’s lax extends losing streak

By Ajan Caneda

Staff Writer

The struggles continued for the women’s lacrosse team as the Orange and Blue suffered another hard-fought loss at St. Bonaventure by a final score of 15-13 on Tuesday. The Orange and Blue had a powered offense with Arriana Sajjad ’15 and Madison Hurwitz ’13 each scoring three goals, but the Bonnies were able to prevent another Bison comeback.

Molly Ford ’14 dished an assist to Hurwitz that gave the Bison the first goal of the game. The Bonnies went on to capitalize on free position shots, scoring three goals that jumpstarted a 9-1 run. The Orange and Blue battled back as Claire Switala ’15 and Emily Kookogey ’15 nailed back-to-back goals that narrowed the deficit. Hurwitz closed out the half with a goal off an assist from Ford. St. Bonaventure led 10-5 at halftime.

The momentum carried into the second half as the Bison forced 12 turnovers while holding a 19-12 edge in shot attempts. Katelyn Miller ’14 scored a goal that trimmed St. Bonaventure’s lead to two with 6:49 left in the game, allowing the Orange and Blue a chance for one more run. It would be to no avail as the Bonnies would score at the 3:00 mark and hold the Bison to one goal in the closing minutes of the game.

Last Saturday, the Bison had trouble containing the sound offense of Holy Cross, as the Crusaders pulled off a convincing 20-5 victory in Worcester, Mass. Lindsey Ferro ’14 scored two goals and had one assist in the loss.

The Crusaders showcased their potent offense, starting the game on a 10-0 run. They held the Bison scoreless until the 3:47 mark of the first half, when Miller nailed a goal off the free position. Ferro and Kookogey ended the half with back-to-back goals that cut the lead to 11-3.

Despite a tough outing, goalie Kristina Patrk ’13 learned a lot in her first career start.

“I learned that being a goalie really does require mental toughness beyond that of a field player,” Patrk said. “As a goalie you definitely feed off of the energy and success of your offense and the fact that we weren’t scoring after a great defensive performance definitely had its adverse effects.”

The Crusaders scored two goals to kick off the second half. Midfielder Sophie Kleinert ’14 answered with a goal of her own, off an assist from Ferro, but the offense of Holy Cross would be too much, as the Crusaders would score nine goals in the second half to put the game out of reach.

“It was a tough game, especially since we did not perform to our potential as a team,” Patrk said. “Holy Cross had a couple of great players who were very patient and able to drive effectively one-on-one against our defense.”

The Orange and Blue will look to close out their four-game road trip with a win as they travel to Vestal, N.Y. to take on Binghamton tomorrow.

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Featured Lacrosse Sports Women

Athlete of the Week: Sophie Kleinert ’14

By Chris McCree

Sports Editor

 

Sophie Kleinert

Year: Sophomore

Position: Midfielder

Hometown: Greenwich, Conn.

Major: Political Science

 

Season Statistics:

 

GP-GS: 12-12

Goals: 11

Assists: 2

SOG %: .720

Ground Balls: 10

 

Despite being part of a 14-11 losing effort to Patriot League rival Lafayette, Sophie Kleinert ’14 put together an impressive offensive performance for the Orange and Blue on Saturday, leading the team with three goals and five shots on target. Starting at midfield for the Bison, Kleinert gave the team the early lead with her first goal of the day less than two minutes in. Later in the half, Kleinert came through with another big goal to preserve the team’s lead following a Leopard offensive rally in which the team tallied two goals within 15 seconds. Entering the second half with a one-goal lead, the Orange and Blue maintained the momentum after Kleinert scored her third goal. 

Along with her three goals, Kleinert also recorded a ground ball and draw control, raising her season totals to 10 and 11 respectively. She also showed off her accurate shooting abilities, as all five of her shots were on target.

Although the team has not had much success this season, Kleinert has certainly elevated her game from her rookie year. Just 12 games into this year, Kleinert has already nearly doubled the six goals she scored last year.

Currently, the Bison hold a 3-9 record and have five regular season games remaining on the schedule. Looking to earn their first league victory, Kleinert and the Orange and Blue will travel to Holy Cross this Saturday to take on the Crusaders at 1 p.m.

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Lacrosse Sports Women

Women’s lax remains winless in conference play

By Ajan Caneda

Writer

The women’s lacrosse team was unable to pick up its first conference victory this past weekend, falling to Lafayette 14-11 in Easton, Pa. Lafayette held the Bison scoreless for the final 12:30, allowing the Leopards to hand the Bison their ninth loss of the season.

Midfielder Sophie Kleinart ’14 scored a team-high three goals, while Katelyn Miller ’14, Ryan Wenk ’13 and Lindsey Ferro ’14 had two goals each.

“Our main goal going into the game against Lafayette was to win draw controls and keep possession,” Miller said. “[Ana White], who takes the draw for Lafayette, leads the nation in draw controls, so it was really crucial for us to be aggressive and give it our all right from the whistle.”

The Bison got off to an early 4-1 lead behind two goals from Miller and an unassisted goal by Arriana Sajjad ’15. Neither team could gain a comfortable edge. The Orange and Blue were able to attempt more shots (15-12) in the first period, but the game remained close. Wenk closed out the period with a goal that gave the Bison a 7-6 lead at the half.

“We came out strong from the very beginning by getting a 4-1 lead, but the game kept going back and forth,” Miller said. “Our attack was really hard to stop because we had multiple threats who could score.”

An early goal in the second period knotted the score at 7-7, but the teams continued to trade goals. Emily Kookogey ’15 dished an assist to Ferro, while Wenk nailed her second goal of the game that gave the Orange and Blue a 10-8 lead. It would be short-lived, as the Leopards answered with two goals of their own. Lafayette took their first lead of the game with 13:53 remaining. Ferro evened the score back up off a free position shot, but that would be the last goal for the Bison.

The Orange and Blue were outshot 13-9 in the second half, while Lafayette held the draw control advantage in the game (15-12). The Leopards also capitalized on free position, scoring five goals off of seven attempts.

“We need to learn to stay composed when we are up and use the clock to our advantage. We didn’t exploit the man-up situations, which allowed [Lafayette] to come back,” Kleinart said.

The Bison look to get back on track against Holy Cross on Saturday in Worcester, Mass. This is the second match of a four-game road trip for the Orange and Blue.

“We definitely fought the whole way through and learned so much that I’m confident the next time we play them, we will be able to be much more competitive,” Miller said.

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Featured Lacrosse Sports Women

Women’s lacrosse falls to American

By Ajan Caneda

Writer

Following an overtime victory against Liberty, the women’s lacrosse team was unable to pull off another comeback, falling to American 22-9 at home on March 24. The Eagles prevented the Orange and Blue from winning consecutive games for the first time this season.

The Bison’s leading scorer, Arriana Sajjad ’15, had another offensive showcase with five goals, while Molly Ford ’14 finished the game with four assists. Emily Kookogey ’15 and Katelyn Miller ’14 scored two goals each.

Both teams traded goals in the opening minutes of the first period, as the game stayed close. A 7-0 run by the Eagles allowed them to surge to an 11-4 lead at the half. American forced 13 turnovers in the first half, 18 for the game and stayed aggressive on the offensive end as they outshot the Orange and Blue 20-12 in the first period.

“Draw controls were a huge aspect of the game. In the second half, they pulled a six-goal streak on us, and it was all from winning the draw,” Sajjad said. “They knew exactly where the ball was going, where to place themselves on the circle and how to execute their break properly. This eventually caused our defense to break down, giving them the lead.”

After an American goal in the opening minutes of the second period, Sajjad posted two goals within two minutes that trimmed the lead to six with 23:20 remaining in the game. The Eagles responded with two goals of their own, but Miller answered with her second goal of the game. The offense of American was too much for the Orange and Blue to overcome, as the Eagles finished the game on an 8-2 run that capped the victory.

American outscored the Bison 18-15 in draw controls and had a 12 shot advantage against the Orange and Blue. Goalie Caroline O’Neill ’15 finished the game with seven saves.

“American worked around the crease really well, and were able to score goals off of tough angles,” O’Neill said. “I think our team has definitely improved greatly and even though the score didn’t show it, the game was really competitive. I think the main difference was the fact that American capitalized on our mistakes, while we did not.”

The Orange and Blue will be seeking their first conference win this Saturday, March 31 against Lafayette in Easton, Pa.

“In situations where we are down like in this game, you just have to keep reiterating positivity and heart, which is what we tried to do,” Sajjad said. “It was a tough loss, but we are preparing to come out strong for Lafayette on Saturday.”

 

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Sports

Women’s lax defeats Manhattan

By Andrew Arnao

Writer

The women’s lacrosse team scored seven straight goals in the first half to pull away from Manhattan and break a five-game losing streak in a home game on Tuesday. The win game three days after the team fell to Holy Cross on Senior Day.

“Against Manhattan, we came out strong at the beginning, and we maintained the intensity throughout the game,” Alyssa DeLorenz ’11 said. “The offense really gelled and worked together, and the defense focused on working as a unit.”

The Orange and the Blue’s scoring streak broken open a game that was tied 2-2 beforehand, allowing the Bison to go into halftime leading 9-3. The second half was more closely contested, but the Bison still finished strong by scoring five of the last eight goals to win 17-11.

Madison Hurwitz ’13 led the offense with six goals, while Ali Carey ’14 and Katelyn Miller ’14 scored four and two goals, respectively. Julia Braun ’11, Sophie Kleinert ’14, Adrienne Wendling ’13, Andrea Feldman ’14 and Lindsey Ferro ’14 also scored a goal apiece. Ashley St. John ’11 led the team with four draw controls, and DeLorenz had a career-high 22 saves in a brilliant outing.

Carey also lauded the effort against Manhattan. “We played well all over the field. We did amazing in transition and were really able to capitalize on our clears,” she said.

The Bison lost to Holy Cross 14-7 on Saturday. They Bison jumped out to a 4-1 lead after several great saves by goalie Alyssa DeLorenz ’11. The Crusaders scored four goals to make it 5-5 going into halftime, then made six straight goals to put the game out of reach.

“We have struggled with coming out strong in the opening minutes of the game,” DeLorenz said, “so for Holy Cross, our goal was to focus on that. Unfortunately, we still couldn’t pull together a full 60 minutes.”

Braun, Carey and Hurwitz each scored two goals, while Kleinert scored one. Carey and Miller each had two assists, while Wendling led the team with five draw controls. DeLorenz had seven saves.

There were 59 fouls for both teams, and the Bison had 21 turnovers compared to the Crusaders’ 10. The Bison led draw controls 15-6.

The team’s four seniors were honored before the game: Braun, DeLorenz, St. John and Christina Garman. Garman also made her first career start in this game.

The Bison women have the weekend off but play their last home game of the season against Columbia next Wednesday at 4 p.m.

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Goalie DeLorenz ’11 leading nation in saves

By Cooper Sutton

Sports Editor

 

Alyssa DeLorenz ’11 has started every game for the Bison women’s lacrosse team in goal this year, only missing seven and a half minutes of game time in the team’s 11 games. As a result of her hard work and persistence in goal, she currently leads the NCAA in saves with 139. Overall, she is sixth all-time in Bison history in saves.

Though her number of saves is very high, so too is her goals against average, standing at 15.17 goals per game. She does not refute that some bad comes with the good.

“I’ve seen a lot of shots, so I’m going to have to make a lot more saves,” she said. “I have to play differently when I’m facing more shots than I would when I face less. If I make a mistake here or there it’s a lot less noticeable. Then it also gives me chances to make saves that I shouldn’t make to make up for the other ones I let in.”

DeLorenz has been resilient in more ways than one in goal so far in her career. Beyond staying persistent after letting in shots, she also continues to play to the best of her abilities despite her team’s losing record.

“I just love lacrosse in general,” she said. “Being from Texas, there aren’t really that many opportunities to play at the collegiate level, so I’ve just been enjoying playing here.”

The high quantity of shots that DeLorenz sees stems in large part to the youth of her team, comprised of 70 percent first-years. As a senior on this team, she has, aside from taking a huge quantity of shots, had to serve as a leader for the young team. She is a co-captain for the team and someone that the young members of the team look up to.

“[DeLorenz] plays with intensity and makes everyone want to work harder,” midfielder Sophie Klienert ’14 said.

She leads by example: when she was struggling earlier this year, she actively sought to make herself better. She spent time working with a former all-American from Duke, who, DeLorenz said, significantly improved her play.

“Right before the Penn State game, she showed me some pointers and some things to work on that I had never thought of before. I’ve been really focusing on those and they have helped me improve significantly. I’m still not quite to where they’d like me to be, but I think I’m getting there,” she said.

Continuing to improve, even as a senior, DeLorenz exemplifies persistence and hard work on a team that is continuing to improve itself. It seems that she may be one of the building blocks that the young team builds on as it attempts to move forward in the future.

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Sports

Women’s lacrosse team falls to 1-3

By Andrew Arnao

Contributing Writer

Despite a strong effort by the defense, the women’s lacrosse team fell to the Robert Morris Colonials 9-5 in Sunday’s home game. The Orange and Blue also lost to Penn State on Wednesday, 22-2.

Against Robert Morris, team captain Julia Braun ’11 scored two goals, while Katelyn Miller ’14, Andrea Feldman ’14 and Ali Carey ’14 scored a goal apiece. Carey also finished with an assist.

The Bison led the game twice in the first half but entered halftime tied 3-3. In the second half, Colonial goalie Kaitlin Pentz made seven saves and allowed only two goals as Robert Morris stormed ahead with six goals.

“During the second half we weren’t able to maintain possession as much as we had hoped,” Adrienne Wendling ’13 said. “Overall I felt as though defensively we did a great job playing together as a unit and having each other’s slides and trails.”

Goalie Alyssa DeLorenz ’11 made 10 saves, eight of them in the first half. Wendling led the team with five caused turnovers, while Sophie Kleinert ’14 had three draw controls. The defense also caused 24 turnovers.

Overall, the teams were very evenly matched, posting similar final numbers. Both teams had seven draw controls, and Robert Morris had 21 ground balls compared to 20 for the Orange and Blue. The Colonials and the Bison also had 24 and 22 turnovers, respectively.

The away game against Penn State was much more lopsided, as the Bison fell behind 9-0 before scoring their first goal with a minute left in the first half. The Bison also scored first in the second half, but the offense was otherwise silent, taking only five shots the entire game.

Miller and Lindsey Ferro ’14 had a goal apiece, while Feldman and Kleinert had assists. DeLorenz also had 18 saves.

The team will play away at Drexel next Sunday, at 1 pm.