Women’s lacrosse to host BU after bye week
After a bye week, the No. 4 women’s lacrosse team is set to face Boston University at 2 p.m. on Wednesday at McAlister Field. For the Trojans, this marks the first time they have ever faced off against the Terriers, and head coach Lindsay Munday welcomed the opportunity to play an unfamiliar team.
“It’s exciting to play a new opponent, to get a fresh face,” Munday said. “They’re a great team, and we need to be ready for a full competition of 60 minutes.”
Junior goalie Caroline Meegan anchors BU in the cage, as she is
third-best in the Patriot League with a .488 save percentage. On offense, junior attacker Avery Donahoe is a force to be reckoned with, notching eight goals and four assists through the first four games of the season.
After a trip to Florida last weekend began with a loss to then-No. 4 Florida (though they bounced back to beat Stetson), the Trojans took advantage of the week off from competition to get back to the basics and focus on getting better each day.
“This week we’ve just been picking up from our Florida trip and really trying to fix the mistakes that we had on that trip,” junior goalie Gussie Johns said. “[We’re] just trying to continue to grow as we move to each game and to build on the things that we’ve worked on this week.”
After winning 23 of its last 25 games, USC suffered its lone loss of the season so far against the Gators before conquering Stetson 18-3 to improve its record to 3-1. In the commanding victory, eight different Trojans found the scoresheet, with four girls recording hat tricks.
“Against Stetson, we really moved the ball well,” Munday said. “Offensively we want to be as dynamic as possible. It’s about sharing the ball and trusting each other and waiting for the best opportunity.”
The Trojan offense is spearheaded by two-time All-American attacker Michaela Michael, who leads the MPSF in draw controls and is the league’s fifth all-time leading goal scorer. Michael is joined by senior attackers Kylie Drexel, Gabby McMahon and Cynthia del Core, who have combined for 28 points so far this season.
On defense, USC features Johns in goal; the junior is second in the MPSF in goals-against average and save percentage. Senior Nina Kelty and junior Lydia Sutton patrol the cage in front of Johns and have caused five turnovers apiece in 2017.
With fresh energy, USC looks to continue building on the foundation it created at the start of the season and avoid getting caught up in the big picture.
“We’re just focusing on the little things and focusing internally rather than getting too consumed with the end of the season,” Johns said. “We were so successful last year because we focused on one game at a time and focused on us rather than who our opponents were.”
With this mindset, the Trojans look to execute their gameplan come Wednesday against the Terriers. After that, USC will welcome another first-time opponent to McAlister Field, as Munday’s squad takes on New Hampshire on Monday at 4 p.m.