Sports
Lacrosse teams hot despite the cold weather
By Tucker Hamlin ’17
April 3, 2015
With temperatures still hovering around 30 degrees and snow piles that may never go away, Hamilton students are beginning to question their decision to attend school in upstate New York. However, both the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams do not seem to mind the cold weather one bit.
On the women’s side, the Continentals are riding a five-game winning streak, which includes games both in Florida and in New England. Most recently, Hamilton (8-1, 4-1 NESCAC) defeated Bates (5-6, 1-5 NESCAC) by a score of 6-2. The Bobcats only had seven shots on goal, with sophomore goaltender, Hannah Rubin, stopping five of the shots.
Hamilton’s Morgan Fletcher ’17 scored two goals in the game and also had an assist as the Continentals had 21 shots. In addition, Caroline McCarthy ’16, Taylor Ryan ’17, Margaret Gabriel ’16 and Ashleigh Stephan ’15 each tallied a goal in the contest.
Led by Ryan, McCarthy, Gabriel and Hannah Haskell ’15, the Continentals totaled 14 caused turnovers, which was the highest total since 2011. Hamilton’s defense has been strong this year, allowing 7.00 goals per game. The Continentals are ranked twenty-third overall in Division III scoring defense. So far this season, the women’s team has not allowed any opponent to reach double digits in goals scored.
Coming in unranked to the season, the women’s lacrosse team is currently ranked eighth in the country. The Continentals are tied with Colby, Middlebury and Trinity atop the NESCAC with a 4-1 record in conference play. While many believe the women have exceeded expectations, do not expect the Continentals to falter. The one loss of the season thus far came at the hands of Bowdoin, ranked #5 in the country at the time, who defeated the women’s team in overtime, 8-7.
The women have an important test coming up this Saturday, April 4, in Hartford, Conn. The #8 Continentals will be taking on the #2 Trinity Bantams. A win this weekend would solidify Hamilton’s dominance atop the NESCAC and likely move them even further in the Division III National Poll.
Over on the men’s side, the Continentals are coming off a very important victory against Bates. Hamilton (6-3, 2-3 NESCAC) defeated the Bobcats (4-4, 1-4 NESCAC) on a last minute goal by John Zimmerman ’15, 8-7. Zimmerman’s fourty-second career tally could not have come at a better time as the Bobcats and Continentals were tied in the NESCAC rankings. Although the Bobcats had a 38-33 shot advantage, Hamilton never trailed in the game and held a 29-28 advantage in ground balls throughout the contest.
Overall, the Continentals find themselves tied for the sixth in the NESCAC with Colby, behind Amherst and Wesleyan. Hamilton has had two tough road losses against Wesleyan in overtime and Bowdoin. Additionally, the men’s team lost to Amherst 13-7 while down in Florida. Despite these losses, the Continentals are about to begin a crucial period in their season. This stretch includes games against #15 Middlebury, Trinity and Williams. Wins against these programs would propel the Continentals towards the front of the NESCAC in preparation for their final NESCAC matchups against Tufts and Connecticut College.
The Continentals are beginning this tough stretch behind the strong goalkeeping of Will Driscoll ’15, who has a .622 save percentage, and leading point scorer Sam Sweet ’16. The Continentals next home game is Saturday, April 4 against the Trinity Bantams.