The Boston University women’s lacrosse team will look to continue its Patriot League success against the United States Naval Academy on Saturday.
The Terriers (4-3, 2-0 Patriot League) have defeated both conference opponents they’ve faced this year. However, this also can be said for Navy (9-1, 3-0 Patriot League). Following an exciting overtime win against the College of the Holy Cross Wednesday, BU hopes to keep its momentum and bring it to Nickerson Field against the Midshipmen.
“It was a tough battle last year,” said BU coach Liz Robertshaw. “I anticipate it being another really hard-hitting, fast-paced, aggressive game again.”
The Midshipmen’s confidence is at an all-time high, as they’ve won their past seven contests, two of which they won by a 15-goal-or-more margin. Navy has been an offensively dominant team, scoring 148 goals this season while their opponents have only scored 62. They lead the Patriot League in goals, averaging 14.8 a match.
“Defensively, our game plan is to slow down a very potent Navy offense,” Robertshaw said. “They’re scoring a lot of points, so we need to look to limit their shots on cage and try to have the ball on our stick more than theirs.”
Navy’s consistent scorers are both upperclassmen. Senior Loren Generi leads the Midshipmen offense with 32 goals, while junior Katie Gallagher has scored 24.
BU’s goalkeeper Caroline Meegan is only a sophomore, but her performance this year has earned her league-wide recognition.
Meegan earned her first Patriot League Defender of the Week honor on March 9. Last year, as a freshman, she earned the Rookie of the Week title twice.
“She has been working extremely hard this spring to put the defense on her shoulders,” Robertshaw said. “She’s confident. She is loud. She makes great saves, and she allows our defensive unit to be aggressive because they know that she has their back. She works every single day to get better, and I’m thrilled with the season she’s had so far, but I know she has a whole ‘nother level to get to.”
Meegan has saved 59 of 147 shots faced this season. Her .484 save percentage puts BU at second in the league in the category. However, she is sure to see more shots on goal than she has in a game this year. Navy has put a league-leading 316 shots on goal this season, more than twice the number of their opponents.
The Terriers’ offense has not been as dependable, Robertshaw said.
“It’s great that we have a lot of people scoring, but we need to be able to count on everyone to have two and three goals, two or three points a game and not have these games where we have five points from someone and no points from her the next game,” she said. “We need a little bit better consistency.”
BU’s offense also has two strong leaders. Redshirt junior attack Mallory Collins leads the Terriers with 20 goals. Junior midfielder Ally Adams has scored 12 goals. Nine other Terriers have contributed to the team’s total 67 goals this season.
Despite struggling with offense, the Terriers have enhanced other aspects of their game.
“We have seen a lot of improvement in our draw controls and our clearing,” Robertshaw said. “So we want to keep that going.”
The Terriers have also worked on skills specific to taking down the Midshipmen.
“We’re really trying to mimic some of the things they do, so our defense is used to seeing it,” Robertshaw said of her team’s preparation. “The biggest thing we’ve been working on is really trying to identify what our looks are going be on attack, who are our dodging threats, who are our feeding threats, and really playing a consistent 60 minutes on attack.”
To be as ready as possible, BU is going into the match with a clear game plan.
“The more that we have the ball on our sticks, then it kind of adds to our own confidence, shows that we’re controlling the game,” Robertshaw said. “We have to compete and battle on draws, on 50/50 balls, really make sure that we have the ball with us and limit their time of possession. I think our defense is up to the challenge.”
