COLLEGE PREVIEW 2013 NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN TOP 20 PENN STATE
2012 RECORD: 12-7 (3-2 ALC) COACH: MISSY DOHERTY (3RD YEAR)
NITTANY LIONS 9
What Penn State lacks defensively, it makes up for on offense. But Nittany Lions coach Missy Doherty knows in the American Lacrosse Conference, that will only take them so far.
Penn State allowed a conference-
worst 193 goals last season, and that was with two-time ALC Goalkeeper of the Year Dana Cahill in the cage. Cahill graduated, and to make matters worse, All-American junior defender Lizzy Carney suffered a knee injury that will keep her out for the season. While the offense returns all three attackers and six of its seven leading scorers, there is plenty of uncertainty to settle on defense, as Penn State looks to return to the NCAA tournament for a second straight year. “If you want to be successful, you have to keep the other team from scoring,” Doherty said. “It’s defi nitely a focus.” Doherty and the Nittany Lions were counting on Carney to be their anchor, but now they are left scrambling to fi nd a suitable replacement. A former midfi elder, Carney shut down some of the nation’s most prolifi c scorers, fi nishing her sophomore season with 36 ground balls and 16 caused turnovers while also scoring fi ve goals, including two in the NCAA tournament. The Nittany Lions do get back redshirt senior Colleen Shea, who had 27 ground balls and caused 16 turnovers in 2012, and Katie Guy will move from the midfi eld to help shore
Feb 20 Bucknell Feb 23 at Loyola Feb 27 at Duquesne Mar 3 at Virginia Mar 6 James Madison Mar 9 at Maryland Mar 13 at Cornell Mar 17 Vanderbilt Mar 22 at Drexel Mar 30 Florida Apr 5 at Northwestern Apr 10 Lehigh Apr 14 Ohio State Apr 17 Lafayette Apr 21 at Johns Hopkins Apr 27 at Princeton
up the defense. But beyond them, only one other returning player — Cat Layne — started any games last year. “It is an opportunity for some of our younger players to step up, and a lot of them played great defensively in the fall,” Shea said. “It’s my job to give the benefi t of my experience.” Penn State must break in a new goalkeeper, a position left unsettled at the end of fall ball. Freshman Emi Smith and junior Melissa Lloyd battled through a close competition, but neither earned the starting spot outright. Fifth-year fi eld hockey goalkeeper Ayla Halus also will be in the mix for the job, though she wasn’t available in the fall. Doherty did not rule out using a two-goalie rotation.
Until the Nittany Lions fi nd their identity on defense, the
offense must compensate — starting with a young but talented midfi eld. Sophomore Tatum Coffey will be a big part of that, coming off a season in which she was the lone freshman to be named an All- American and had a run as the youngest player on the U.S. national team. Penn State could use more of that magic in 2013.
68 LACROSSE MAGAZINE February 2013 >>
Tatum Coffey was not the only Penn State freshman to make noise in 2012. After emerging as an elite feeder, Maggie McCormick now also will get the green light to go to goal.
— L.P.
Tatum Coffey
RIVAL COACHES SAY “Missy Doherty is a great coach. It’s her team now. They’ll survive the ALC and earn a top- 8 seed in the NCAA tournament… Coffey’s experience on the national team will help… Cyr and McCormick are two of the best attackers you’ll fi nd behind the goal… They will surprise with some wins — and losses.”
TOP RETURNER M Tatum Coffey (So.) Fresh off a stint with Team USA, Coffey is one of the most exciting players in the country. She was the lone freshman All-American in 2012 with 34 goals, 53 draw controls and 18 caused turnovers.
X-FACTOR D Katie Guy (Sr.) With All-American Lizzy Carney out for the season with a knee injury and the graduation of two-time ALC Goalie of the Year Dana Cahill, Guy must bring stability to the defense. Guy, who at 17 became the youngest member of Team Canada, moves from the midfi eld, where she accounted for 23 ground balls, 30 draw controls and 13 caused turnovers.
PROJECTED STARTERS
A Mackenzie Cyr (Jr.)* G: 34 A: 23
A Maggie McCormick (So.)* G: 29 A: 23
A Molly Fernandez (Sr.)* G: 35 A: 4
M Tatum Coffey (So.)* G: 34 DC: 53
M Jenna Mosketti (Fr.) G: 34 A: 18 (at McTeague High)
M Ally Heavens (Fr.) G: 66 A: 44 (at Garnet Valley High)
M Kelly Lechner (So.)* G: 20 GB: 23
M Haley Ford (So.) G: 15 GB: 11
D Colleen Shea (RS-Sr.)* GB: 27 CT: 16
D Katie Guy (Sr.)* GB: 23 DC: 30
D Erin McAfee (So.) CT: 1 GB: 0
GK Melissa Lloyd (Jr.) GAA: 7.88 SV: 1 * returning starters
TELLING NUMBER 1999
The Nittany Lions made the NCAA tournament for the first time in seven years last season. A Publication of US Lacrosse
Year of Penn State’s last final four bid.
©ZAC HARDY (TC, MM); ©PENN STATE (MD)
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