LaxPower Back-Up Stick

In women's lacrosse
A rivalry, none compares:
NU UMD

OuttaNowhereWregget wrote: ↑Thu Apr 04, 2024 12:08 pm

hmmm wrote: ↑Thu Apr 04, 2024 8:24 am

Essexfenwick wrote: ↑Thu Apr 04, 2024 6:47 am At this point the games for all the flawed contenders are to figure out how to maximize strengths and cover weaknesses for the tournament. UMD has the greatest potential for improvement but the great potential just hasn’t fired on all cylinders.

Most of the MD offensive players have been there for 5 years with the same mediocre results (with the exception of the one year Rory was there). I'm thinking after 5 years, they are what they are. Not sure how they have the greatest potential for improvement unless Cathy is going to start playing some of the younger girls.

Excellent points.

Maybe because MD is like 53rd in the country in goals per game technically they have the most room to improve. But that group isn't suddenly going to figure things out.

Looks like it's a sellout tonight.

Feels like NW is about to pull away and win comfortably in the second half. Sterling is keeping this from being a blowout. MD's offense had a good initial burst but back to its normal self. Some of that is because of NW's defense.

jff97 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:00 pm Feels like NW is about to pull away and win comfortably in the second half. Sterling is keeping this from being a blowout. MD's offense had a good initial burst but back to its normal self. Some of that is because of NW's defense.

Yup. Turnovers are atrocious. Md needs to match NW's aggression to keep it close.

belleoftheball wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:03 pm

jff97 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:00 pm Feels like NW is about to pull away and win comfortably in the second half. Sterling is keeping this from being a blowout. MD's offense had a good initial burst but back to its normal self. Some of that is because of NW's defense.

Yup. Turnovers are atrocious. Md needs to match NW's aggression to keep it close.

This group of upperclassmen for MD has never been aggressive. In this case NW also has the better athletes too.

jff97 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:06 pm

belleoftheball wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:03 pm

jff97 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:00 pm Feels like NW is about to pull away and win comfortably in the second half. Sterling is keeping this from being a blowout. MD's offense had a good initial burst but back to its normal self. Some of that is because of NW's defense.

Yup. Turnovers are atrocious. Md needs to match NW's aggression to keep it close.

This group of upperclassmen for MD has never been aggressive. In this case NW also has the better athletes too.

Agreed. It's not looking good for Md.

Side note, but M Taylor had a couple of dives that were pretty bad.

This one is all but over.

Trying to figure out how Syracuse lost to this listless group of Maryland attackers.

Northwestern now doing whatever they want. See a running clock coming before too long. Maryland can’t get anything on offense and not good enough on d. Too many weapons to cover.

laxfan9999 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:25 pm Northwestern now doing whatever they want. See a running clock coming before too long. Maryland can’t get anything on offense and not good enough on d. Too many weapons to cover.

It's getting hard to watch. Offense is lacklustre to say the least.

belleoftheball wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:28 pm

laxfan9999 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:25 pm Northwestern now doing whatever they want. See a running clock coming before too long. Maryland can’t get anything on offense and not good enough on d. Too many weapons to cover.

It's getting hard to watch. Offense is lacklustre to say the least.

Lackluster is being kind.

Seacoaster(1) wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:29 pm

belleoftheball wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:28 pm

laxfan9999 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 06, 2024 7:25 pm Northwestern now doing whatever they want. See a running clock coming before too long. Maryland can’t get anything on offense and not good enough on d. Too many weapons to cover.

It's getting hard to watch. Offense is lacklustre to say the least.

Lackluster is being kind.

Lackluster all around and now forcing shots because they're down big. Not a good combination. Emily Sterling deserves better.

Maryland's D isn't all that. pure and simple. If they werent winning so many draws, this could get ugly.

Last few years, Maryland has struggled against teams with 4+ scorers. they do well against 1 or 2 prong attacks, struggle against multi-faceted attacks.

Also several soft goals against Sterling. Any other goalie in the country this side of BC would have been pulled by now.

KAH is a great coach. Has NW ever had a top recruiting class?

No they haven’t. She gets athletes and refines their skills. It’s an aggressive and well thought out strategy.

NW is on another run after years of being down. F Scott Fitzgerald wrote “there are no second acts in American life”
KAH is blowing that up. Proud to that Terp grad.

HailMaryPass wrote: ↑Thu Apr 04, 2024 11:02 am I think Northwestern's style of flopping (Taylor) and diving (Scane & some of the offense) is going to knock them out on Maryland's hard field. Plus home field advantage, NW better prepare for a Maryland crowd.

I'm not a Maryland fan, I haven't been watching their games much this season but my call is the score will be close, low scoring and we'll see NW bruised up by the end of it. Hmm lets say 11-10 NW wins

Defender U?




Madison Taylor's stat line: 6 goals, 1 assist, 11 shots, 10 on goal, 2-4 FP. 2 DC's.

As far as her flopping (as long as folks want to continue to focus on that), every time she went down, that I noticed last night anyway, was followed by a ref making the checking into the sphere signal. And as I've said before, those of you whining about Madison Taylor going down so easily--you'd love to have that flopper scoring 6 goals in a game for your team, wouldn't you... Yeah--thought so.

Michigan and other teams in the D1 top 25 should have been watching last night's game and taking notes as to how Northwestern went about their business. They swaggered into that crapbag astro turf field hockey facility and didn't tone down a dang thing. Scane was especially demonstrative and didn't look concerned in the least about showing up or motivating the Little Turtles with her exaggerated stick drops and mugging for her teammates in between goals. And rightfully so. No sense of awe is currently due this once mighty Maryland team. Northwestern won at College Park? Whoopdie-frickin-do. The Florida freaking Gators have 2 wins on that same cruddy carpet since 2020. No big deal to win there anymore. No big deal to beat this team any longer.

There's no room for improvement with these 2024 Old Line State Chelonians. As hmmm stated so succinctly earlier--they are what they are, and they have been what they are since 2020. Face it Twerp Nation, Taylor Cummings is not walking through that door, Megan Taylor's not walking through that door and Zoe Stukenberg's not walking through that door. You are what you are--a good-not-great team with an offense still in a wandering, starts-and-stops identity crisis; with apparently no answers or help from Reese.

Another tell-tale sign? Essexfenwick is reduced to boasting about the Rippling Bay Field White Beauties by acknowledging Northwestern's head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller as a Maryland alum. How are the mighty fallen. Indeed.

I haven't seen Taylor one tenth as much as many here but I haven't seen all the flopping she's accused of doing by the many here.
Very good, and strong, player.

DMac wrote: ↑Sun Apr 07, 2024 7:26 am I haven't seen Taylor one tenth as much as many here but I haven't seen all the flopping she's accused of doing by the many here.
Very good, and strong, player.

They are just jealous that KAH is able to evaluate talent much better than their teams.
From IL honorable mention to 1st year, day 1 starting attacker, big 10 freshman of the year, NU’s next superstar.