During every season, a team is inevitably going to go through a few rocky stretches. Such is the nature of athletics. For the women’s hockey team, that rocky part of the season occurred last weekend, as the team recorded two consecutive 2-1 defeats. Losses to the Holy Cross Crusaders and the Hamline Pipers, two teams that the Cardinals should have beaten, brings their record to 7-9 overall (5-4 NESCAC).
“It really wasn’t one thing that killed us,” said assistant captain Liz Courtney ’04. “This weekend, for some reason we just couldn’t pull it together. It was a little bump in the road and we just have to make up for it next week.”
Last season, Holy Cross was a team that the women was able to handle quite easily. Unfortunately, things were much different this season, as this was the second time the Cardinals have fallen to the Crusaders. Anna Siliciano ’05 attempted to bring the team back with a late goal from a Frances Jacobus-Parker ’05 assist, but it was too late to mount a successful comeback. The defeat left a very sour taste in the collective mouth of the team.
“That was the last time the seniors had a chance to play Holy Cross, so we’re pretty depressed,” said captain Tasha Clauson ’04.
The game against Hamline can be summed up quite well with one word: domination. For the entire game, the Cardinals peppered the Hamline goalie with shot after shot, only to be unceremoniously denied almost every single time. Trailing by two goals with three and a half minutes left, Wes looked poised to capitalize on a Hamline penalty and decided to pull goalie Meredith Katz ’07 to give them a six on four player advantage. But the Hamline goalie was up to the task once again, denying Wes players multiple times and driving the final nail into the Cardinals’ coffin. Siliciano ’05 once again scored a last gasp goal on assists from Molly Adams ’07 and Andrea Snow ’04, but nothing else could be mustered as the final seconds ticked off the clock. A look of disappointment covered the player’s faces as they left the ice.
“Saturday’s game against Hamline was a fluke,” Clauson said. “I’m not quite sure why we played so badly, maybe we were tired from the night before. But, every team has a bad game once in while. Hopefully, we’ve had ours for the season.”
Up next for the Cardinals is Tuesday’s game against UMass-Boston. The team is clearly motivated going into this pivotal week, as they face off against NESCAC juggernauts Williams and Middlebury following the UMass-Boston game. The team will be looking to rebound strongly from this weekend’s disappointment and right the ship before sailing into the playoffs. It is clear that improved play is on the team’s mind.
“Winning on Tuesday obviously would be a big step in regaining our confidence,” Courtney said.
Clauson shared in that opinion.
“We are hoping to turn things around, so we are definitely going to play a lot better,” she said.
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