The Rowan lacrosse team got back on the winning track after taking down Susquehanna 18-8 in an entertaining game on Wednesday, April 5. The win improves their record to 8-3 for the season with the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) and NCAA tournaments on the horizon.
After dropping a close one to Christopher Newport on Saturday, April 1, Head Coach Lindsay Delaney is proud of her team for overcoming any added stress from Saturday’s loss.
“We shouldn’t have lost on Saturday and I think they know that,” Delaney said. “Then I felt like there was some pressure on them for a while today. There was about a five-minute span where we weren’t scoring during the fourth quarter. We then took a timeout because you could feel the tension and they were just trying so hard to score instead of allowing the game to come to them. I think that was based on the fear from Saturday when we couldn’t perform.”
Senior goalkeeper Reilly Shaup played in the cage for the Profs and described this game as a must-win for her and her teammates.
“There was no other choice, we needed this win to go into our NJAC play,” Shaup said. “We really needed to come out on top today and have a better record.”
After making some incredible saves to limit Susquehanna’s offense, Coach Delaney is pleased with Shaup’s efforts in the cage.
“I think [Shaup] did her expectation. I think there was a couple [goals] I wish she had back but I think she’s in control, she’s a communicator,” Delaney said. “You’re going to get consistency out of [Shaup], the team knows that. That’s why they rely on her to be like a wall back there.”
Leading the way for the offense was freshman Elaina Corson, scoring five of the team’s 18 goals.
“I just think, me scoring goals, it really takes a whole team, everyone working off the ball and just looking for the best option,” Corson said.
Jamie Cutrera, Michaela Donnelly and Molly Green added to Rowan’s tally as they all recorded a hat trick. Green believes that the difference in the team’s energy from last game to this one played a pivotal role in their win.
“I think last game, we were just flat in certain quarters. We didn’t put a full game together,” Green said. “I think you can say that about parts of this game too, but I think it was definitely a more complete game. We needed to bounce back, we know how good we are so let’s play like it.”
Part of Green’s game involved intercepting passes made by Susquehanna’s players. These interceptions lead to Donnelly’s third goal of the game.
“That’s my favorite part of the game and I feel like I’ve been lacking it a little bit lately,” Green said. “So I felt like it was definitely a very good thing to cause turnovers. So it felt really good to get plays like that today.”
A big factor that led to the Profs’ victory was their communication as a team. From both ends of the field, people in the stands could hear the team talk to each other.
“Communication on the field is huge. Everyone on the sideline, they provide the energy whether they like to think so or not,” Green said. “Obviously everyone wants to be on the field, but the sideline is just as important. And then communication on the field is always huge, draw circle, defense, attack, you always need it so it’s definitely a good thing to have.”
Goalkeeper Shaup thinks communication is key when she’s in the cage.
“I love communicating with my teammates. I like to know that I’m not alone in the net because it is really lonely sometimes and to know that I have seven other people basically willing to get in front of a shot with me,” Shaup said.
The Profs will look to continue building momentum when they hit the road to face TCNJ on Tuesday, April 11.
For comments/questions about this story tweet @TheWhitSports.
