The field hockey team (2-0 overall) got out of the gates fast this season with home wins against Vermont (0-2 overall) and Delaware (0-1 overall).
The Leopards got the action started early in last Friday’s win against Vermont, as sophomore midfielder Lea Good and senior midfielder Lineke Spaans each scored a goal in the second period to take a 2-0 lead heading into halftime.
While the Catamounts narrowed the gap with a third-period goal, the Maroon and White were able to maintain their lead to close out their season opener with a win.
“We work all summer,” junior defender Makenzie Switzer said. “We’ve been two-a-day practices since all of August and just really working together, working for each other on and off the field, getting our tactical ability, our technical ability up to a high standard so that we can perform and start winning games.”
Sunday’s win over Delaware saw continued success for the Maroon and White, particularly on the defensive end where the Leopards held the Blue Hens scoreless in a 1-0 shutout.
“We have a lot of communication in the back,” Switzer said. “We have a lot of knowledge and a lot of game IQ. We know how to work together. We have our entire returning back line, back four, plus our midfield, so we just know the ropes and are trying to get the freshmen incorporated into our routine.”
The lone goal in Sunday’s win came from a first-period goal by Spaans, who tallied two goals across the team’s two games. Spaans was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week for her performance. Junior goalkeeper Raffi Fragomeni and sophomore defender Lena Thedrian were also named goalkeeper and defender of the week, respectively.
“I don’t want it to sound cheesy, but I think it’s just the teamwork that’s allowing us to attack and find opportunity honestly,” Spaans said. “My teammates are giving me good balls and they’re in good spots and we can just capitalize on our opportunities.”
Although the Leopards remain undefeated, their wins weren’t without tense moments. Specifically, the team struggled to put Delaware away in the game’s final period, with the Blue Hens having three corner kick opportunities in the game’s final minute and a half.
“We were just defending as a team so much,” Spaans said. “We knew it was one minute, it’s 30 seconds, it’s five seconds. We were as a team, strung together, working together, hyping each other up and doing our roles. It’s just amazing that the clock went down and we won the game.”
Coming off a season in which the team came up just short of winning the Patriot League championship, the Leopards look to balance their long-term goals of postseason play with staying focused on the opponent in front of them.
“We try to stay process-oriented,” Switzer said. “We talk about focusing on the process more than the end goal. Obviously, November, the Patriot League championship is something we’re competing for every single day. We want to get there again, but you can’t get there if you don’t win the games early on, so we have to focus and take every game like it’s a Patriot League championship so that we can get back there in November.”
The Leopards will be back in action for a two-game road stretch against Dartmouth today and New Hampshire on Sunday.
