Coming off a team best 9-6 campaign in 2004, the women’s lacrosse team made the trip to sunny Florida to begin the 2005 season. All-time leading scorer and pre-season All-American Becca Vogel ’05 and junior attack Becky Meredith put together strong performances over the course of the trip, leading the Cards to a 4-1 start that featured a defeat of NESCAC opponent Bates College. The Cardinals are currently ranked 15th in the nation.
Wes faced off against the University of Rochester in its first contest of the season March 8, coming out a 13-12 winner in a nail-biting opener that featured five goals from Vogel and four from Meredith. Lauren Ogden ’07 put the game out of reach late in the fourth period with a goal of her own.
The Cards gutted out their second game against Ithaca College, taking over in the second half to secure a 12-7 victory despite trailing 3-2 at the half. Vogel paced the Cardinals with five goals and was the only Cardinal to net multiple goals, though Laura Siegle ’06 contributed a pair of assists.
SUNY-Cortland handed Wesleyan their first defeat of the season in a game that was a tale of two halves. Outscored 8-2 in the first half, the Cardinals rallied for six in the next two periods. But the early deficit was too great as Cortland put away five of their own in the second half to take home a 13-8 win. Captains Vanessa “Vee” Jones ’05 and Vogel each recorded hat tricks in the loss.
Shortly after returning to Middletown, a snowstorm forced what was supposed to be the Cards’ home opener to be moved to the turf surface at Trinity University. Facing off against Eastern Connecticut, Meredith ran the show for the Cardinals, putting together a seven point afternoon on two goals and five assists en route to a 13-5 rout. A close contest early, the Cards narrowly edged out ECSU 6-5 in the first half before stepping up their play on both ends to put the game out of reach. Meredith, Siegle, Vogel, Vee Jones and Ogden each notched a pair of goals, while goalie Kate Jones ’06 and senior defensive Captain Katharine Needham ’05 shut down the Eastern Connecticut attack in a dominant second half showing.
“What better way to come off our trip than to take our first game at Trinity,” Vee Jones said. “It’s a good feeling knowing you own another NESCAC team’s field, enough to call it home turf. In a way we are sort of like pirates—we pillage and plunder at a new location and then claim the glorious booty as our own. In this case the booty would be our first home win.”
Wesleyan played its first conference game Saturday at Bates. With about 20 minutes left in regulation, the Bobcats converted on a scoring opportunity to keep the game close, narrowing the gap to a feeble 8-7. The potent Cardinal attack answered by netting two consecutive goals to seize the momentum and a 10-7 lead. That would be the final as Kate Jones held tough in the final minutes of what was an excellent game in net, stopping 12 of 19 shots. Siegle and Meredith each had hat tricks to lead the offense.
At 4-1, the Cards continue to improve.
“With regard to this year’s team, we have leadership strength in captains, Needham, Vogel and Vee Jones,” said head coach Holly Wheeler. “The three of them have turned what was a struggling program their freshman year to one of the nation’s top 20 teams. It will be an exciting year as there are many experienced players to lead the charge and some younger players who will have lots of opportunities to get involved.”
Last season was the best in program history, and the team shows no sign of slowing. Vogel, the Cards’ all-time leading scorer continues to add to her total, putting up big numbers early with 17 goals and 21 points in the first five games of what looks to be a dynamite senior season. Vogel’s heroics are not without company as the rest of the Cardinal attack has done their best to standout, collectively netting 39 scores of an impressive 56 total.
“The past five games have really given us a chance to see what we’re made of,” Vee Jones said. “We’ve had some breakout performances all over the field. Becca Vogel and Becky Meredith have been tearing it up, while midfielder Laura Siegle was a hometown hero in Maine with three goals and a couple of assists against Bates.”
The Cards will meet Smith on the Pioneers home field in their next contest Tuesday, hoping to put together another strong performance after handling the Pioneers 17-2 last season. Characterized by high-speed aggressive play, Ladies Lax will be a team to watch.
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