Featuring a very inexperienced roster that included just five returning starters from the 2004 squad, the University of Mary Washington field hockey team overcame several obstacles throughout the 2005 season to return to prominence as a very formidable team to play in the NCAA Division III South region.
Led by a group of seniors, the Eagles rebounded from a slow start by winning five of their last seven contests against a very difficult schedule. Senior Brynn Maguire capped her outstanding career by gaining First Team All-America honors after scoring 16 goals and adding six assists, a total of 38 points in 20 games. Classmate Colleen Dunn stepped into a starting role, and performed wonderfully, with 11 defensive saves, which ranked among the tops in the nation.
Midfielder Caitlin O’Leary repeated as an all-conference performer, and midfielder Meghan Punaro battled through injury to post five assists. The Eagles began the season with a tough 4-3 overtime loss to Johns Hopkins University. After a season in which the Eagles went 5-0 in overtime, this defeat would be the only game all season which went to extra time.
A pair of CAC road wins, at Goucher and York, followed a 2-0 loss to nationallyranked Lebanon Valley College, and preceded a pair of one goal losses, to St. Mary’s College and Washington College. UMW rebounded from a home loss to Franklin & Marshall College with back to back victories, over Dickinson College and Roanoke College, by identical 3-0 scores. Head coach Dana Hall’s squad entered the stretch run of the season with a 5-1 win over Bridgewater College, and perhaps the biggest win of the season, a 3-1 win at Virginia Wesleyan followed.
The momentum carried through a 9-0 win over Sweet Briar College, before a defeat at the hands of topranked Salisbury at the Battleground Complex. Undaunted, the Eagles rebounded with a big 1-0 win over Randolph-Macon College to close the regular season, and advanced to the CAC semifinals after topping York in a scoring blitz, 5-3. The Eagles saw their season come to an end with a 3-0 loss at Salisbury, but the Eagles held their heads high after holding the Sea Gulls scoreless for the first half – the first time all season that SU didn’t hold a halftime advantage.
Three rising seniors will look to be the glue that holds the 2006 team together. Forward Jena Elliott, who scored two game winning goals and finished second on the ’05 team with seven goals and 16 total points, will look to pick up the scoring slack left by Maguire’s graduation. Defensively, the Eagles will be led by senior goalkeeper Katherine Brown (20 games, 44 GA, 2.82 GAA, .793 save percentage) and senior defender Lauren Allen (two goals, six points), who was also key on penalty corner offense.
Others who will look to build on a successful 2005 campaign include rising sophomore forward Mandy Thompson, who had six goals (including two game winners) and 13 points; junior Meredith Marconi (three goals, two assists); and sophomore Sarah Pierson (two goals, three assists). Sophomores Amy Hruska and Emily Gallugi will look for larger roles in 2006 as well after posting solid freshman seasons