Saturday, May 13, 2017

Trinity vs. Hamilton - NESCAC Semi-Finals

The Bantams traveled up to Middlebury, VT for the NESCAC semi-finals and finals. We played Hamilton in the semi-final round and got a bit of redemption on them since they came to our home turf and beat us on senior day at the end of the regular season. The Bantams put forth a total team effort and beat the Continentals 12-3. It was a great game and everything just seemed to be going the right way for the Bantams. Seven different players scored, with Kiley Coffey leading the charge with 5 goals. It was great that so many different attackers were able to get on the board, and it just showed that we were moving the ball really well on attack and finding those open players and open lanes. Our defense played as a solid unit together, causing 10 turnovers and picking up 18 ground balls. Senior defender Lara Guida caused 3 turnovers herself and also picked up 2 ground balls. She has been a major rock for us in the defensive end playing such unbeatable defense down low on the crease. Zoë Ferguson also played outstanding in net, saving 9 of the 12 shots that she faced. With that win, the Bantams advanced to the NESCAC finals to take on the Colby College Mules, who beat Middlebury earlier that day to advance. 

Senior midfielder Nicole Stauffer running the ball up the field

Junior midfielder Georgia Mergner playing defense

Senior defender Lara Guida running the ball out of our defensive end

Senior Karly Simpson and Junior Clara Nowlan doubling a Hamilton attacker

Senior midfielder Karly Simpson about to take a shot (and score!)

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Trinity vs. Tufts

The Bantams faced the Tufts Jumbos in the quarterfinals of the NESCAC tournament on Saturday. They came flying out of the gates right from the first whistle and never looked back. It was great to see the Bantams play so much attack and find the back of the net so many times. The Bants got out to a 6-0 lead in the first 11 minutes of the game thanks to a hat trick right off the bat from senior midfielder Karly Simpson, who went on to score two more goals for a total of 5 on the day, followed by senior attacker Clare Lyne getting two of her own back to back, and junior attacker Abby McInerney scored a goal of her own before the Jumbos got on the scoreboard for the first time. 

The second half of the game was very similar to the first half, with the Bantams scoring 6 goals in a row in a span of about 8 minutes. Kiley Coffey scored all 5 of her goals in the second half, to keep the Bantams fired up with momentum. Clare Lyne scored 4 goals, had an assist, gathered 4 draw controls, and picked up a ground ball. Abby McInerney scored 2 goals, had an assist, and also grabbed 4 draw controls. Grace O'Donnell found the back of the net 2 times, and had an assist as well. Senior attacker Emma Malicki set up her teammates 3 times and picked up a ground ball. Junior attacker Jenny Cook came into the game and made an impact right away, scoring a goal of her own on her first shot. 

It was a fun game to be a part of and to watch with so much ball movement and fluidity on the attack. The girls definitely were finding each other and moving well, which is exactly what we want to be seeing at this point in the season! Our defense had a solid performance, holding them to 18 shots, with Zoë Ferguson saving 8 of them in cage. 

It was a great day and the Bantams now advance to the semi-finals of the NESCAC tournament! We will be facing the Hamilton Contintentals on Saturday May 6th at 2:30pm at Middlebury College! 

GO BANTS!!!!


Junior attacker Grace O'Donnell shooting around the Tufts goalie
GOALLLLL!!!!


Senior attacker Clare Lyne looking for teammate Kiley Coffey

Another goal!!!
Junior goalie Zoë Ferguson set up to save a Tufts shot

Junior attacker Kiley Coffey driving to score 1 of her 5 goals on the day

Senior attacker Clare Lyne sealing off a defender as she drives towards net

Junior midfielder Allie Barrett

Junior attacker Abby McInerney

Lots of celebrations after goals today!

Monday, May 1, 2017

Trinity vs. Amherst

The Bantams traveled to Amherst, MA to take on the Mammoths of Amherst College on Wednesday night. We got back into the win column with a solid team performance. Although we trailed 3-0 in the opening minutes of the game, the Bantams kicked it into high gear after that and never looked back. Our attack scored 6 unanswered goals, to have a 6-4 lead at halftime. Senior attacker Clare Lyne and junior attacker Kiley Coffey led the charge scoring a combined 5 of the 6 goals of the first half alone. The Bantams never let up and went on to score 8 more goals in the second half, 2 more by Clare Lyne, 2 by Karly Simpson, 2 by Abby McInerney and 1 more by Kiley Coffey. Nicole Stauffer was huge for us on the circle, grabbing 3 draw controls to help us gain possession and get the ball to our attacking end. 
Our defense played great, only giving up 14 shots on Zoë, who saved 7 of the shots she faced. Freshman defender Morgan Strabley caused 3 turnovers for the Bantams, which was huge is turning the momentum back to us. It was a great way to end the regular season with such a strong performance and win for the Bantams. Now onto post season!!

Freshman Emma Fehnel pulling out of a double team during warm ups

Sophomore midfielder Mary French

Junior midfielder Georgial Mergner handling the pressure from a defender

Trinity vs. Hamilton

The Bantams took a tough loss against Hamilton, which was also our Senior Day game. We honored and celebrated the amazing career (which isn't over yet!) of our 9 amazing seniors before the game started - defenders #1 Lara Guida, #3 Katherine Foca, #12 Meghan Collins (tri-captain), #18 Kathryn DeLillio, midfielders #15 Karly Simpson (tri-captain), #21 Nicole Stauffer, and attackers #7 Emma Malicki, #10 Clio Kammerer, #22 Clare Lyne (tri-captain). This senior class has led the Trinity Bantams to an impressive overall record of 70 wins and 11 losses, they have won 2 NESCAC titles and have advanced to the NCAA Championship game each of the past three years. Not only have they succeeded on the field, but they have also achieved excellence in the classroom, helping the team achieve an impressive cumulative GPA of 3.56. They have been great leaders for our team and have helped to continue and further develop the incredible culture of Trinity Lacrosse. We're going to miss them next year, but their ride is far from over right now! Despite the loss today, they have unfinished business to take care of.

The Continentals from Hamilton College came out to a strong start and got the Bantams on their heels in the first half. It was 4-2 at halftime, and the Bantams just couldn't get a rally going until it was too late. Senior attacker Clare Lyne had 3 goals, an assist, a draw control, and a caused turnover. Junior attacker Kiley Coffey put away 2 goals of her own and picked up 2 ground balls. Junior defender Clara Nowlan had a great day on defense, grabbing 2 draw controls, 1 ground ball, and causing 2 turnovers. Senior defender Kathryn DeLillio also had a good day on defense, picking up 3 ground balls, and causing 3 turnovers.

The Bantams will bounce back from today and come out ready to go against Amherst!

GO BANTS!

Junior class ready to give the seniors flowers before the game
Senior attacker Clare Lyne

Senior defender Kathryn DeLillio

Senior midfielder Karly Simpson

Senior defender Meghan Collins


Senior defender Lara Guida

Senior defender Katherine Foca

Senior attacker Emma Malicki

Senior attacker Clio Kammerer
Senior midfielder Nicole Stauffer

Pictures from Middlebury Game

Freshman Caroline Toomey taking a shot during warm-ups

Sophomore Caroline McKenna during warmups

Manager Julia Macchi dancing around during warmups!

More dancing!

Senior attacker Emma Malicki looking for a feed

Junior attacker Kiley Coffey taking it to goal
Junior attacker Abby McInerney

Senior attacker Clare Lyne

Junior midfielder Allie Barrett going 1v1 to net

Senior midfielder Karly Simpson

Friday, April 21, 2017

Trinity vs. Middlebury

We knew that this game was going to be a tough battle just given the recent history between the Bantams and the Panthers of Middlebury. Last season, the Bantams went up to Middlebury and won during the regular season but then couldn't find a way to beat them the next two times they faced them later in the season - for the NESCAC title and for the National Championship title. Last weekend, the Bantams fought hard through a full 60 minutes plus 4 overtime periods against the Middlebury Panthers. It was one of the most evenly matched games of lacrosse I have ever seen. Unfortunately, the Bantams fell 10-9, however, not at all for a lack of effort or opportunity. The game could have gone either way and the match-up was so even, we are very proud of our team for the effort and fight that they put up against the Panthers. I am sure that we will see them again, so the Bantams came out on Monday at practice focused and ready to get back at it. 
Junior attacker Kiley Coffey came out and scored the first goal of the game just 1:22 into the game. There was never more than a 2 goal lead throughout the duration of the game, so there was no letting up at any point because it was such a tight battle. Kiley Coffey had a huge day for the Bantams, not only scoring the first goal of the game and setting the tone, but she added 4 other goals for a total of 5, 1 ground ball, 1 draw control, and 1 caused turnover. Senior attacker Clare Lyne also made an impact gaining possession of the ball off the draw 6 times, picking up 1 ground ball, causing 1 turnover, and adding a goal and an assist on the day. Junior attacker Grace O'Donnell also had a goal and an assist of her own as well to help the Bantams. Junior attacker Abby McInerney had a goal and picked up 2 ground balls and caused 1 turnover during the game. Our attackers have been a huge threat on our ride as they hunt down the other team to get the ball back after a turnover or a save in our attacking end. Their hustle to track down the Panthers in the midfield was critical to our success in the game on Saturday. 
Defensively, junior defender Clara Nowlan was a beast and was not letting any of the Middlebury attackers beat her. She caused 2 turnovers and picked up 3 ground balls in our defensive end. She has also been a major contributor in our transition and working to get the ball from our defensive end up to our attacking end. Junior goalie Zoë Ferguson was a brick wall in between the pipes, saving 9 of the 19 shots she faced. She kept the Panthers scoreless on their 4 free position shots that they had on her and came up with some HUGE saves in the overtime periods as well! It was a great game and a total team effort. Although we didn't come out on top that day, the Bants should be holding their heads high because it was a good battle and there are lots of good things to take away from the game and lots to learn to make us better. There is still lots more lacrosse to play in our season.

Next Up: Hamilton @ home on Saturday April 22nd at 12pm for our senior day. 

GO BANTS!!!

Tuesday, April 18, 2017

Trinity vs. Wesleyan

 In their Coaches vs. Cancer game against Wesleyan University, the Bantams raised close to $3,000 to donate for cancer research as well as beating the Cardinals 11-8 in a great team effort. The Bantams scored first off a free position shot by junior midfielder Georgia Mergner and held the lead for the rest of the game. It was a very tight game that was back and forth the whole time, but the Bantams never let up against the unrelentless Cardinal team. The Cardinals had the edge over the Bantams 11-10 in draw controls won, but the Trinity defense was very strong and caused 7 turnovers to help get the ball back for our attack. Senior midfielder Nicole Stauffer had 2 caused turnovers and junior defender Clara Nowlan picked up 3 ground balls and had 1 caused turnover. Junior goalie Zoë Ferguson also had a great night in the cage - saving 10 of the 18 shots she faced. On the other side of the ball, the Bantams shot 100% on their free-position shots! This was a great stat for us and something that the Bants have been working on every day in practice, so it was nice to see it translate into a game! We had 6 free positions and were able to get in and get a good shot off to score on all 6 of them, which was huge to be able to capitalize on those opportunities, especially in such a close game where they really matter and make a huge difference. 
Senior attacker Clare Lyne had 3 goals on the night as well as 2 draw controls. Fellow attacker, junior Abby McInerney had 1 goal and picked up 4 draw controls. Those two have been key players on the circle for us and have been able to come up with majority of the draws. Junior attacker Grace O'Donnell is another player who has been so consistently solid for us every game and is producing and doing all the little things well. She had 2 goals and an assist on the night. The attack is really gelling well together and working well off each other, which is fun to watch! Junior midfielder Georgia Mergner had a really standout game and sparked a lot of momentum for the Bantams. She had 2 fantastic goals that were huge. She started off the scoring on a free position shot after she drew shooting space. Then she had a great cut through the middle and scored off a pass from teammate Grace O'Donnell. It was great to see her step up in such a big way in such a big game for us. This team has been working so hard and we're excited to see where it will take them.

GO BANTS!!



Freshman attacker Tina Cartwright looking to shoot during warm ups
Freshman middie Emma Fehnel firing off a shot during warm ups
Some initials on the back of a shirt to honor those loved ones who have battle or are battling cancer
Game time!
Freshman defender Sarah Montalbano fighting for a ground ball
Senior midfielder Karly Simpson

Junior attacker Grace O'Donnell



Junior attacker Abby McInerney getting some air as she goes up for the draw control
Junior attacker Grace O'Donnell
All smiles and thumbs up after a big win!




Monday, April 10, 2017

Trinity vs. Connecticut College

Traveling down the road to New London, CT, the Bantams took on the Camels on hump day and drove away with a 12-9 win. It was a bit of a chillier night, playing on their field right down by the water. The Bantams took off to a strong lead, holding the Camels to just 2 goals in the first half, while scoring 8 of their own. Junior attacker Kiley Coffey had a big night, scoring 2 of her 3 goals in the first half, and also grabbing 7 draw controls. Kiley has been great taking the draw for us this year, aiding in our success on the season since coming up with the draw controls are so pivotal. The past couple of games junior midfielder Allie Barrett has been flying off the first whistle and making huge impacts in the first half of the game helping us to gain momentum early. She scored all 3 of her goals in the first half and also picked up 2 ground balls and caused 2 turnovers throughout the game. 
The second half started off with a goal from senior attacker Clare Lyne, one of 3 on the night for Lyne. She also dished out 2 assists and came up with 2 draw controls. The Bantams then found themselves in a little bit of a lull and allowed the camels to come back into the game a little bit. The Trinity defense let up 5 unanswered goals to end the game, however, they were able to stop them there and come up with a 12-9 victory. Mid-week games can always be a bit tough with their class schedules and having to travel, but luckily the Bantams came out strong enough in the first half to be able to keep that lead until the end.

The Bantams will now begin to prepare for a big week coming up with Wesleyan University on Tuesday April 11 at 6pm and Middlebury College on Saturday April 15 at 12pm. Both games are home, so come out to Robin L. Sheppard field for either game! Or follow live stats and video online at the following website: https://www.nsnsports.net/colleges/trinity/

GO BANTS!!!