Posted: Jul 25, 2011
The Eagles opened the season with a hard-fought 8-7 win at the Battleground over Virginia Wesleyan College, a game in which the Eagles fell behind early and stormed back with five straight goals. The Eagles then fell at home to Hampden Sydney, in a game that saw UMW fall behind early, 11-2, but nearly come all the way back.
UMW then fell to second-ranked Stevenson University on the road before responding with a 13-7 home win over McDaniel College. Trailing 4-2 in the second quarter, UMW reeled off six goals in the frame to push ahead for good. The Eagles dropped a tough 9-8 score at Christopher Newport to fall to 2-3 on the year.
In need of a victory, the Eagles returned home to find nonconference foes Eastern University and the College of Wooster, and the familiar surroundings of the Battleground parlayed a pair of lopsided victories, 10-2 and 14-4. After dropping a road contest at Goucher College, the Eagles rebounded with a thrilling 8-7 win over St. Mary’s, but then fell on the road at \#1 Salisbury.
After squeaking past Marymount, 9-8, the Eagles seemed to get better by the game, topping Frostburg State University, 10-1, then Hood College, 20-3. A road win at Wesley by a 16-8 score preceded perhaps the most impressive win of the year, a 17-5 victory over York College, with whom the Eagles were tied for third in the league standings. UMW scored nine goals on 10 shots in the first quarter alone, putting the game all but out of reach in the opening quarter.
Coach Glaeser’s Eagles then hosted Hood in the CAC Tournament first round, and topped the Blazers by an 18-4 margin for the team’s 11th win of the year, tying the school record set in 2002. UMW then fell at Salisbury in the semifinal round, but not before leading early on and trailing by an 11-5 margin into the fourth quarter.
The Eagles showed balance and accuracy from the attack, as UMW saw five players score at least 22 goals, and the Eagles converted on 33.7% of their shots – compared to just 26.1% for their opponents. Junior Harry Snyder led the Eagles in scoring with 25 goals and 17 assists, while seniors Evan Weiss and Kohl Meyer added 38 and 37 points, respectively. Senior Mark Bowler scored 29 points, with sophomore Sean Dacey and freshman Luke Dick each adding 28 points.
Defensively, the Eagles saw two goalies named conference player of the week during the season, as senior Ryan Kleman posted an 8.41 goals-against average in 14 games, and junior Ryan Montgomery added an 8.23 GAA in 13 games. Kleman would gain all-state honors with Meyer, and gain USILA National Academic Team honors.