No. 19 Jays bounce back vs. Villanova

The Lady Jays bounced back from their losses to No. 9 Penn
State and No. 2 Maryland this past Wednesday with an 11-4 win on the
road against the Villanova Wildcats.

"Villanova is not a strong team, therefore we were able to really
concentrate on our game plan and perform the way we are capable of
playing. This game gave us back some of the confidence we had lost in
the games against Maryland and Penn State," said senior captain Jen
McDonald. She added, "It was also a great opportunity for our bench to
see some playing time."

The Blue Jays were dominant agaist against Villanova. They commanded the
ground balls 29-18 and the draw controls 10-7. Hopkins began the
scoring with two unassisted goals, the first from junior midfielder
Heidi Pearce and the second from fellow midfielder freshman Kelley
Putnam.

Pearce then fed junior attacker Marlena Wittelsberger for her first goal
of the season, followed by a free position goal from senior attacker
Meghan Burnett. Junior midfielder Kate Barcomb quickly followed suit
with an unassisted goal of her own. Junior Pearce then scored her
second goal of the game off a feed from freshman attacker Sarah Walsh.
This whirlwind of goals gave the Blue Jays a 6-0 lead going into the
second half.

The first half shutout was not only attributed to the attack, but the
Hopkins defense, as well. Junior Rachel Krom, junior Kate Gilland, and
sophomore Kristen Miller were a stronghold on the defensive end, while
sophomore Anne Crisafulli had a stellar performance, making the move
from midfield and stepping in on defense for the absent Lacey Hentz,
whose ankle is still on the mend.

The halftime break did not deter the scoring fury of the Lady Jays.
Senior midfielder Erinn Dennis further fueled the Hopkins' fire with an
unassisted goal. The Wildcats finally got themselves on the scoreboard
with a free position goal from Meghan Carolan. This goal was answered
by the Blue Jays as freshman attacker Meagan Voight fed senior attacker
Liz Holland for a goal. Villanova volleyed in return with a goal from
Amy Rocap to set the score at 8-2.

Freshman attacker Natalie Cooper had her first career goal on a free
position shot, followed by the third goal from Heidi Pearce. Cooper
then tallied her first career assist to give Putnam a goal. The
Wildcats made a last attempt to make the scoring margin smaller with
two more goals from Lindsey Syphard and Katie Komlo.

Captain Meghan Burnett said about the match, "This game gave us a chance
to have a large score, gave a lot of our players a chance to see time
on the field and boosted our overall team morale."

Not only was there a possibility for field players to see time, all
three of the Hopkins' goalies were able to see time in this game
against Villanova. Senior keeper Jen McDonald started and played the
whole first half, while freshman Lauren Riddick and sophomore Catherine
Sawyer split time in the second half. All three combined for five
saves. Villanova goalie Jess McGratten tallied seven saves for the
Wildcats.

The next week promises a grueling schedule for the Lady Jays as they
play five games in a period of 10 days. They will go on the road
Wednesday when they take on American University in Washington, D.C. at
4 p.m. Their last two home games are on Friday against George
Washington at 7 p.m. Their final game will take place on Sunday against
UNC at noon in a rescheduled game from earlier in the season.