Top Coach

Kelly Berger – Women’s Lacrosse

Once again Kelly Berger has led the women’s lacrosse team to the America East Championship. It’s only her second year as the team’s head coach and already she has been the conference runner-up back-to-back years. This after the team couldn’t even sniff a post season berth for several years prior to her taking over. While everybody knew Berger was going to have some big time offensive weapons to work with, the defense was a big question mark with both Sarah Willis and Kate Quick having graduated. But as it turns out this year’s team was even better defensively, and more defensively oriented.

Male Freshman of the Spring

D.J. Ream – Baseball

Last year D.J. Ream was unable to play for the baseball team because of an injury but that extra year to sit out seems to have really let him develop his game. Ream led the baseball team with a .331 batting average in 35 starts and looks to be the centerpiece of a rebuilding program.

Female Freshman of the Spring

Kim Berghaus – Women’s Tennis

Coming in as a freshman in any sport is hard enough as you have to learn the system and adjust to the collegiate level. But coming in as a freshman from another country having to not only learn the system of the level of Division I collegiate athletes, but also a new language and culture is even tougher. But Berghaus thrived through all of that and making her freshman year even more impressive was that she was put in the top spot and has a team best 11-6 record and went 11-4 in doubles competition en route to being names the America East conference women’s tennis Rookie of the Year.

Best Male Performance

Scott Jones scores five against Albany

On the road, in a tough place to play, against a desperate team, in need of a win of his own, Scott Jones scored five goals to lead UMBC to a 13-9 victory over rival Albany. Four of Jones’ goals came in the fourth quarter as UMBC came back to get the victory. Jones’ first goal in the game came in the final minute of the first quarter to give UMBC a 3-1 lead and then, in the fourth quarter Jones gave UMBC a 9-8 lead. However, Albany tied the game a few seconds later and Jones scored three-straight to clinch the victory for the Retrievers.

Best Female Performance

Amanda Pappas nets six against Manhattan

It doesn’t matter if the women’s lacrosse team was way better than the Manhattan Jaspers, when one player can get through a defense that is practically triple teaming her whenever she gets the ball and score six times, it’s impressive. Amanda Pappas scored six goals in a 20-6 victory and the only thing preventing her from scoring more was Kelly Berger taking her out of the game midway through the second half.

Best Moment

Women’s lacrosse upsets Boston U in semi-finals

For a second-straight year the women’s lacrosse team scored a major upset in the semifinals of the America East tournament to advance to the conference championship game. Historically the Terriers has dominated the Retrievers but UMBC notched their second ever victory against Boston U with a 12-11 overtime win, and first since 2006.

Most Improved Male Athlete

Scott Jones – Men’s Lacrosse

I’ll admit. Before this season I never even heard of Scott Jones. He was on the team and saw time in a few games last year but he was pretty much a non-factor. Not this year though. This year Jones proved to be one of the best scorers in the conference and dominated defenses once he got in the right position. With a team-high 23 goals the second-team all-conference attackman looks to be the centerpiece of the squad for the next two years.

Most Improved Female Athlete

Ashley Scroggin – Softball

Last year Ashley Scroggin only went to the plate 13 times and managed only a single hit. While it was a home run, she was not much of a threat at the plate. But this year she was one of the top performers the softball team had, hitting .279 from the plate with 20 runs, 5 doubles, 10 home runs and 29 RBIs.

Unsung Male Athlete

Jamie Kimbles – Men’s Lacrosse

When you only score 10 goals and have eight assists but still make an all-conference lacrosse team it says a lot about your ability. Jamie Kimbles was put in a very difficult spot this season. With so much youth on the team Kimbles not only had to be a quality starter but he had to be the leader or the men’s lacrosse team. Before the season Kimbles suffered an injury and was out pretty much all of the preseason. He came back a few games into the season but was still rusty. But when he finally got back to full health it was clear just how much he meant to the team. When he got healthy the offense ran through him and the team turned things around and went 5-3 in their final eight games.

Unsung Female Athlete

C.J. Durham – Women’s Lacrosse

When you think of the women’s lacrosse team you think of a potent offense that will put up a lot of goals and outscore their opponents. But this season the team was actually more defensively oriented and leading that defense was four-year defender C.J. Durham, who scooped up 18 ground balls and caused 15 turnovers while starting all 18 games for the Retrievers.

Fan’s Choice Male Athlete of the Spring

Austin Drewyer – Baseball

Four years ago Austin Drewyer was a solid rotation player for the UMBC baseball team. Potential was just oozing out of him and four years later he finally became that ace that the team needed him to become. Drewyer has a team-best ERA in a team-high innings pitched with six complete games for the Retrievers.

Fan’s Choice Female Athlete of the Spring

Amanda Pappas – Women’s Lacrosse

Amanda Pappas capped off a fantastic career at UMBC with another high-scoring campaign. With a team-high 41 goals Pappas was absolutely unstoppable and was yet again an all-conference midfielder. To go with her 41 goals she has 15 ground balls, 18 draw controls, 12 caused turnovers, and assisted six of her teammates goals.

Male Athlete of the Spring

Gaulthier Berret – Men’s Tennis

Last year as a freshman Gaulthier Berret was adjusting to a lot of different things; to the system, level of play, to school, to the country, to the culture, etc. But as a sophomore, with everything figured out, Berret became one of the top players in the conference and was named to the America East all-conference first0team in singles competition. Berret was also a second-team honoree in doubles competition. He went a team-best 14-3 in singles competition and had a victory over a nationally ranked opponent when the team played Maryland.

Female Athlete of the Spring

Amanda Deller – Women’s Track and Field

In only her sophomore year Amanda Deller officially proved to be the top female thrower in the America East conference. In the 2011 America East conference championship meet Deller walked away with a gold medal, which she also won last season, in the shot put with a mark of 14.38 meters and also finished in second in the discus with a throw of 41.63 meters.

Erika Braerman scored two goals and had an assist on senior day.

The seniors stepped up on senior day. Amanda Pappas scored UMBC’s first three goals and Erika Braerman netted two goals and an assist as the Retrievers got by the Bearcats of Binghamton, 9-8 in a very rough game consisting of 54 fouls, eight yellow cards, and 25 turnovers.

The emotion of senior day may have gotten to the Retrievers early on and not even four minutes in UMBC found themselves behind by two goals but Amanda Pappas netted back-to-back goals to draw even. and after Kristen Stone gave the Bearcats a lead again, Pappas completed her hat trick to tie the game at three each.

Ali Castiglie gave Binghamton the lead again with her first of three goals but with 1:07 left in the first half Kristen Bilney scorer for the eighth time this year to re-tie the game. Then, with one tick left on the clock Braerman netted her first goal of the game to give UMBC their first lead of the game.

UMBC extended the run to three 10 seconds into the second half when Alicia Krause scorer her first or two goals following the opening face-off in the second half.

But Binghamton did not make things easy and kept responding and outscored UMBC 3-1 over the next nine minutes to draw even at seven each.

Braerman gave UMBC the go-ahead goal with just under 10 minutes left in the game but Binghamton once again found a way to even the score when Beth Moore scored her third goal of the game with 8:43 left in the game.

But with exactly 8:00 left in the game Ashley Stodter scored her first goal of the game and extended her scoring streak with the game-winning goal.

Goals were at a premium for UMBC as Binghamton keeper Lauren Scott was phenomenal with 14 saves in 60 minutes.

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UMBC (9-5, 3-1 AE)

Lauren Mundell

A – Erika Braerman (25 g, 16 a, 4 GB, 3 CT)
A – Ashley Stodter (24 g, 2 a, 20 GB, 9 CT)
A – Lindsay Cox (10 g, 1 a, 5 GB, 3 CT)
M – Alicia Krause (32 g, 14 a, 25 GB, 15 CT)
M – Amanda Pappas (29 g, 5 a, 14 GB, 7 CT)
M – Meagan Linkous (1 g, 1 a, 7 GB. 5 CT)
M – Kristen Milligan (17 GB,3 CT)
D – C.J. Durham (14 GB, 14 CT)
D – Jessica Harkey (10 GB, 5 CT)
D – Lauren Mundell (13 GB, 9 CT)
GK – Natalie Rau (80 s, 110 GA, 42.1 save%)

Key Reserves

A – Emily Coady (19 g, 9 a, 6 GB)
M – Kristen Bilney (7 g, 3 a, 7 GB, 8 CT)
M – Madi Bell (3 g, 4 a, 13 GB, 8 CT)

Key Wins:
New Hampshire – 10-8
Stony Brook – 10-8

Key Losses:
@ Boston U – 13-9
Johns Hopkins – 12-7

Goals Per Game: 11.14
Goals Against Per Game: 9.86

Binghamton (3-10, 1-2 AE)

Beth Moore

A – Kimberly McGeever (10 g, 4 a, 13 GB, 1 CT)
A – Lis Zuern (27 g, 11 a, 9 GB, 4 CT)
A – Ali Castigle (27 g, 7 a, 14 GB, 3 CT)
M – Beth Moore (31 g, 1 a, 28 GB, 17 CT)
M – Lizzie Wright (5 g, 3 a, 11 GB, 7 CT)
M – Lena Amalfitano (4 GB, 4 CT)
D – Siobhan Menz (1 g, 31 GB, 12 CT)
D – Lindsay Vona (6 GB, 7 CT)
D – Lauren Lukefahr (1 g, 23 GB, 20 CT)
D – Kristin Pennino (11 GB, 12 CT)
GK – Lauren Scott (118 s, 159 GA, 42.6 save%)

Key Reserves

A – Lindsay Angelillo (4 g, 4 GB, 1 CT)
M – Katherin Hunsberger (6 g, 10 GB, 8 CT)
M – Brittany Stufano (2 g, 1 a, 7 GB, 3 CT)
M – Amanda Hughes (2 g, 5 GB, 6 CT)
M – Casey Bulman (1 g, 1 a, 6 GB, 1 CT)
M – Allie Sabitus (1 g, 2 GB, 1 CT)

Key Wins:
Niagara – 20-8
Vermont – 14-13

Key Losses:
Boston U – 15-6
Stony Brook – 10-9

Goals Per Game: 9.23
Goals Against Per Game: 12.23

*Projected Starters

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UMBC has not played particularly great their last four game, even their wins were too close for comfort, so last game Kelly Berger made a couple changes in her lineup hoping to find something to spark the team. But it didn’t work. With the loss of Jamie Fahey on the defensive end of the field the women’s lacrosse team was outrun by Johns Hopkins as their fastest player and possibly best defender is done for the season. But they still have plenty of offensive talent on the team and can make huge runs against any team that goes against them.

As for Binghamton, they are a better team than their record says, many of their games they’ve been in until their opponents made late runs to make things look worse than they were. Binghamton is a scrappy defensive team but they’re going to be going up against a very emotional women’s lacrosse team that want to give their seniors a senior day victory.

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Starters

UMBC
A – Erika Braerman, Emily Coady
M – Alicia Krause, Ashley Stodter, Kristen Milligan, Kristen Bilney, Amanda Pappas, Madi Bell
D – Meagan Linkous, Jessica Harkey, C.J. Durham
GK – Natalie Rau

Binghamton
A – Lindsay Angelillo, Lis Zuern, Ali Castigle
M – Beth Moore, Lizzie Wright, Katherin Hunsberger, Amanda Hughes
D – Siobhan Menz, Lindsay Vona, Lauren Lukefahr, Kristin Pennino
GK – Lauren Scott

The one time I don’t project Emily Coady in the starting lineup she gets back in. There aren’t too many changes from last game, except Coady is in for Lindsay Cox, which is presumably a strategy to get more offense.

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First Quarter

29:13 – Binghamton Goal
UMBC is down a goal quick after Katherine Hunsberger took an inside pass from Lis Zuern and put it in the top right corner of the goal. 1-0 Bing

27:49 – Binghamton Goal
Beth Moore made a dodge right in front of the goal and got the ball right past Natalie Ray on the one-on-one situation. 2-0 Bing

25:48 – UMBC Goal
Emily Coady came around the back of the net from the right side and passed it right inside to Amanda Pappas, who put it right in the top of the goal for the score. 2-1 Bing

24:48
Binghamton keeper Lauren Scott made a pass out to the left side of the field and had the pass knocked down by Ashley Stodter. Stodter scooped up the ground ball, shot it high after running in toward the goal, but Scott made the save.

22:10 – UMBC Goal
Alicia Krause made a dodge inside and got the ball up to Amanda Pappas and from just outside the crease she put the ball in the right side of the goal to tie things up. 2-2 Ties

21:34
Emily Coady had a free position shot saved but the ball bounced off Lauren Scott’s stick and as Binghamton scrambles to get it back it went out of bounced, giving UMBC the ball back.

21:04
Alicia Krause was fouled and given a free position shot but Lauren Scott recorded her fourth save of the game.

18:56
Amanda Pappas was fouled and given a free position shot but it bounced right in front of the goal and went wide.

15:44 – Binghamton Goal
Kristen Stone was given a free position shot after a UMBC foul and two UMBC yellow cards, one on Kristen Bilney one on the team. 3-2 Bing

15:19
A yellow card on Binghamton evened the field to 10 on 10 but Erika Braerman sent the shot wide on a free position shot.

12:31
Krause rolled around a Binghamton defender and got a clear look at the goal but Lauren Scott recorded her sixth save in the first 18 minutes of the game.

9:31
Ashley Stodter was given a shooting space foul but sent the free position shot way high and way wide.

8:13 – UMBC Goal
Amanda Pappas is stepping up on senior day after taking an inside pass from Erika Braerman for her third goal of the game. 3-3

5:51
Madi Bell stormed right up the middle of the field and hit a shot in the top of the goal but it was taken back but her momentum carried her into the crease and it was taken away.

4:45 – Binghamton Goal
Right after the turnover by UMBC Binghamton ran up the field, made a few passes, drew a foul and Ali Castigle scored high on the free position shot. 4-3 Bing

1:27
Liz Zuern got a yellow card and UMBC will have an advantage for the remainder of the first half anf for the first 1:33 of the second half.

1:07 – UMBC Goal
UMBC storms up the field after the card and Kristen Bilney scored on a high shot to tie it up four. 4-4

0:01 – UMBC Goal
One tick left on the clock and senior Erika Braerman storms around the right side of the goal and blasts a low shot through traffic to the bottom of the goal. 5-4 UMBC

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Halftime – UMBC 5, Binghamton 4

This is one sloppy game, there are a combined 35 fouls and 17 turnovers between the two teams but Amanda Pappas is stepping up big time in her final regular season home game and scored UMBC’s first three goals but any score is hard to come by with Lauren Scott in goal for the Bearcats as she had nine saves in the first half.

——————–

29:50 – UMBC Goal
Right after the opening draw control Alicia Krause ran right down the middle of the field and put the ball in the net to double UMBC’s lead. 6-4 UMBC

26:18 – Binghamton Goal
Ali Castigle came around the left side of the goal, made a cut to get to the outside of the UMBC defender and put her shot right past Natalie Rau’s head. 6-5 UMBC

22:26 – UMBC Goal
Alicia Krause took an inside pass made a cut to the outside and put the ball in the top of the goal to re-establish a two goal leads for UMBC. 7-5 UMBC

21:22 – Binghamton Goal
After a foul down UMBC’s side of the field Binghamton got the ball, got up the field in a hurry, and Beth Moore blasted the shot high into the goal to cut UMBC’s lead in half again. 7-6 UMBC

Following the goal Kendall Mason replaced Natalie Rau in goal.

20:56
Kristen Bilney was called for a yellow card, her second of the game, ejecting her from the game but after three minutes UMBC can sub back in. There was also a yellow card on Lis Zuern, which was her second so she is also out for the rest of the game.

17:00 – Binghamton Goal
Ali Castiglie scored her third goal of the game after a cross check just outside the crease gave her a free position shot. 7-7

UMBC called a timeout after the Binghamton goal and Natalie Rau is back in the cage.

11:25
Natalie Rau came up with a big save after Beth Moore ran right at her after a free position shot.

9:36 – UMBC Goal
Erika Braerman ran around the goal from the right side and while she was making her way to the left she blasted a shot low to give UMBC the lead. 8-7 UMBC

8:43 – Binghamton Goal
Beth Moore scored her third goal of the game with an inside cut to the goal. 8-8

8:00 – UMBC Goal
Senior Ashley Stodter scores her first goal of the game from right in front of the goal on a low shot. 9-8 UMBC

2:28
Binghamton’s Lindsay Vona gets a yellow card, she’s out for the left of regulation.

1:51
Beth Moore gets called for a foul and gets handed a yellow card so Binghamton is two down for the rest of regulation.

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Final Score – UMBC 9, Binghamton 8

UMBC escapes with a rough win to improve to 4-1 in conference play.

More to come after I chat with the players!

Through three quarters UMBC was was locked in a defensive battle against the Bobcats but they scored four goals in the final 10 minutes of the game to walk away with their second victory of the year.

Erika Braerman recorded her third hat trick of the season.

The women’s lacrosse team beat New Hampshire for the first time ever, topping the Wildcats, 10-8. The first half was as expected, a high-scoring affair. UMBC went into halftime with an 8-6 lead bu in the second half UMBC went for possession and only four goals were scored between the two teams.

After Alicia Krause scored the first goal of the game UNH scored back-to-back goals and after UMBC tied it back up, the Wildcats went back up by a goal.

Then UMBC went on a five goal run. Amanda Pappas netted her second and third goals of the game in that run, she also scored UMBC’s second goal of the game, giving her 17 goals in the last four games.

The defense was really struggling in the second half but after New Hampshire scored their second goal of the half at 22:51, cutting UMBC’s lead to 9-8, UMBC barely ever let UNH get the ball back.

Kelly Berger called a time out with 10 minutes left in the game to calm her team down and right after, Krause netted her third goal of the game to give UMBC a two-goal lead that stuck the rest of the game.

While the defense was suspect down the stretch, Natalia Rau, who had six saves, made two impressive saves at the end.

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UMBC (6-3)

Amanda Pappas

A – Erika Braerman (17 goals, 13 assists, 3 GB)
A – Emily Coady (13 goals, 8 assists, 5 GB)
A – Ashley Stodter (19 goals, 1 assist, 13 GB)
M – Alicia Krause (17 goals, 9 assists, 14 GB)
M – Amanda Pappas (21 goals, 4 assts, 10 GB)
M – Kristen Milligan (11 GB, 4 CT)
M – Kristen Bilney (5 goals, 6 GB, 7 CT)
D – Meagan Linkous (3 GB, 1 CT)
D – Jamie Fahey (19 GB, 11 CT)
D – Lauren Mundell (11 GB, 9 CT)
D – C.J. Durham (6 GB, 11 CT)
GK – Natalie Rau (43 saves, 56 GA, 43.4 save%)

Key Reserves:

M – Lindsay Cox (6 goals, 1 assist, 3 GB)
M – Madi Bell (2 goals, 4 assists, 11 GB)
M – Taelar Errington (1 goal, 1 assist)
D – Jessica Harkey (7 GB, 3 CT)

Key Wins:
vs. Delaware – 8-5
vs. Manhattan – 20-6

Key Losses:
@ Duquesne – 8-7
vs. Loyola – 15-8

Goals Per Game: 11.78
Goals Allowed Per Game: 9.33

New Hampshire (5-3)

Jojo Curro

A – Meghan Bridges (2 goals, 1 assist, 2 GB)
A – Jenny Simpson (12 goals, 2 assists, 7 GB)
A – Jojo Curro (3 goals, 6 assists, 2 GB)
M – Kate Keagins (14 goals, 8 a, 25 GB, 20 CT)
M – Amber Casiano (11 goals, 8 assists, 3 GB)
M – Allie Duclos (7 goals, 22 GB, 16 CT)
M – Ally Stager ( 5 goals, 17 GB, 10 CT)
D – Erin Levesque (6 GB, 2 CT)
D – Casey Doyle (15 GB, 8 CT)
D – Cara Dowdle (7 GB, 6 CT)
D – Cori Rees (6 GB, 4 CT)
GK – Kathleen O’Keefe (31 S, 53 GA, 36.9 S%)

Key Reserves:

M – Ilana Cohen (13 goals, 6 assts, 10 GB, 6 CT)
M – Hayley Rausch (9 goals, 2 assists, 2 CT)
M – Chelsea Cyster (3 goals, 1 assist, 1 CT)
M – Molly Gaffey (1 goals, 1 assist, 2 GB)
D – Sarah Campbell (3 goals, 1 assist, 1 CT)
D – Jamie DePetris (5 GB, 1 CT)

Key Wins:
vs. George Mason – 11-8
vs. Presbyterian – 20-4

Key Losses:
vs. Massachusetts – 11-4
@ Vanderbilt – 11-6

Goals Per Game: 10.38
Goals Allowed Per Game: 8.50

*projected starters

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So far this is the most important game for the women’s lacrosse team as it is their America East conference opener. Last season UMBC was beaten by New Hampshire handedly, 16-8, in Durham, and this year the Wildcats are a much stronger squad. They have a lot of offensive weapons and a load of midfielders that are very good two-way players. Their defense is also a lot better this season because of those talented midfielders. Not only can they get the ball in the net, but they cause a lot of turnovers and capitalize on them.

But UMBC can score too. Amanda Pappas has been dominating on offense, scoring 14 goals, in three games. But she’s far from the only option. UMBC has four 10+ goal scorers, four of whom have topped 15 in only nine games. While New Hampshire has gotten much better, so has UMBC and they’re going to be out their to rebound from their loss to Loyola.

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Starters

UMBC
A – Erika Braerman, Ashley Stodter
M – Lindsay Cox, Alicia Krause, Amanda Pappas
D – Jamie Fahey, Meagan Linkous, Lauren Mundell, Kristen milligan, Jessica Harkey, C.J. Durham
GK -Natalie Rau

New Hampshire
A – Jenny Simpson, Jojo Curro
M – Kate Keagins, Amber Casiano, Ilana Cohen, Allie Duclos, Hayley Rausch, Ally Stager
D – Erin Levesque, Casey Boyle, Cars Dowdle
GK – Kathleen O’Keefe

Kelly Berger went with a similar lineup last game, she’s apparently trying to get more of a defensive team out on the field early to keep her bevvy of attacks fresh throughout the game.

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First Half

2:07 – UMBC Goal
Alicia Krause scored a Free Position goal after UNH had a shooting space foul. 1-0 UMBC

4:27 – UNH Goal
Amber Casiano tied the game with a quick shot down off a pass from Hayley Raush. 1-1 Tied

8:00 – UNH Goal
UMBC made a bad pass and was intercepted by a UNH defender. Hayley Rausch capitalized on the mistake off a Jojo Curro pass. 2-1 UNH

9:54 – UMBC Goal
Meagan Linkous was given a free position shot and made a quick pass to Amanda Pappas, who was running parallel to the goal. 2-2 Tied

10:35 – UNH Goal
Hayley Rausch hooked up with Ilana Krause to give UNH a quick lead. 3-2 UNH

13:09 – UMBC Goal
After a shooting space foul, Erika Braerman capitalized on a free position goal. 3-3 Tied

13:57 – UMBC Goal
A UNH defender committed a 3-second violation by standing in the small fan without being on a UMBC offensive player. Alicia Krause was given a free position shot and made it low. 4-3 UMBC

14:17 – UMBC Goal
Erika Braerman made a nice runs down the field and made a quick dodge after winning a draw control. 5-3 UMBC

19:46 – UMBC Goal
Amanda Pappas blasted a high shot on a free position shot after she was fouled while splitting two defenders. 6-3

21:21 – UMBC Goal
Alicia Krause just stormed up the field, split to defenders, and made a pass over another one to get the ball to Amanda Pappas, who netted her third goal of the game. 7-3 UMBC

20:13 – UNH Goal
Ilana Cohen ends UMBC’s run with a quick dodge and low shot. 7-4 UMBC

27:03 – UNH Goal
Hayley Rausch makes it back-to-back UNH goals. 7-5 UMBC

27:19 – UMBC Goal
Erika Braerman gets another goal off a draw control off a pass from Ashley Stodter. 8-5 UMBC

27:30 – UNH Goal
Ally Stager responds with her own quick goal off a draw control, running right down the middle of the field for the score. 8-6 UMBC

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Halftime Score

8-6 UMBC
This is a very even matchup, as expected. Every time one team gets in a rhythm the other team ends their run. With a two goal difference in the score this one is far from over.

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Second Half

0:57 – UNH Goal
Kate Keagins made a nice roll inside to get withing one score of the Retrievers. 8-7 UMBC

4:13 – UMBC Goal
Amanda Pappas got the ball to Lindsay Cox, who was wide open in front of the goal and shot it down to the lower left corner for the score. 9-7 UMBC

7:09 – UNH Goal
UMBC is not playing well defensively right now. They commit another dumb foul and Kate Keagins scores on a free-position shot. 9-8 UMBC

20:08
UMBC started playing the possession game but after a long timeout Alicia Krause scored a quick goal off a roller. 10-8 UMBC

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FINAL SCORE

UMBC 10, UNH 8

The defense was pretty questionable early on so UMBC decided to just waste some time and at the end, despite heavy defensive pressure from UNH, they just didn’t give up the ball and never allowed New Hampshire a chance to score as the Retrievers were able to walk away with the 10-8 conference victory.

Emily Coady led UMBC with 35 goals last season

Picked third in the preseason polls behind reigning champion Boston University and reigning regular season champion Albany, which the Retrievers beat in the quarterfinals, 11-9, second-year coach Kelly Berger has plenty of reason to believe her squad can contend this season with more than 80 percent of their scoring and four 30-goal scorers that were apart of the America East’s second highest-scoring offense.

If Emily Coady (35 goals), Amanda Pappas (34 goals), Ashley Stodter (33 goals), and Erika Braerman (32 goals) weren’t enough, Alicia Krause (24 goals) and Lindsay Cox (10 goals) both return and will be joined by Navy transfer Madi Bell (9 goals) and highly-touted freshman Jenn Wells and Maddie Irwin.

Up front in the attack for UMBC will be Coady, Stodter, and Braerman, a very experienced group of one junior (Cody) and two seniors that have had major impacts since they started at UMBC. While she has plenty of scoring options around her, Coady, who was ninth in the America East in goals per game last season, could be due for an even better season and showed just how much of a scoring threat she was in last year’s AE tournament, where she scored eight goals in two games.

Coady is the one that the offense runs through as she plays behind the goal, calls out the plays, and shifts in the offense.

In the midfield Pappas has gotten a reputation as one of the league’s top players, proven by her America East All-Conference Second team selection after a stellar junior campaign.

Amanda Pappas proved to be one of the league's top midfielders last season

While Bria Phillips (23 goals, 10 assists) left UMBC for academic reasons, the return of Carrie Paris, who missed half of last season with an injury, should really bring a real defensive boost to the unit. Meanwhile, Krause, who primarily played up front last season, is expected to switch spots with Stodter, who mostly played in the midfield the last two seasons, in order to take advantage of her defensive ability. Also adding a defensive presence in the midfield will be freshmen Kristen Bilney and Taelar Errington.

The defense is going to be the key to the women’s lacrosse team’s success. The team will score, and in bunches. UMBC finished second in the conference in goals against average, allowing only 8.86 per game but lost four-year starter Sarah Willis and first team All-Conference goalkeeper Kate Quick, who nearly played every minute the last two seasons, saving 126 shots.

The back-line will still have plenty of talent to work with. C.J. Durham (22 ground balls, 22 caused turnovers) led UMBC in caused turnovers each of the last two seasons while Jamie Fahey was the 2010 Rookie of the Year and won’t hesitate to bring the ball up the field and attack the goal. Meagan Linkous, who was used as a defensive midfielder last season, could move down to fill in at the third starting spot, but will be pushed by Kristen Milligan.

Lauren Mundell, Jessica Harkey, and freshman Jackie Benson should also see time in the back.

The biggest question mark for the team will be at goalkeeper. Nobody will know who the starter will be until game time but, it appears to be nearly a three-way tie between senior Natalie Rau, sophomore Kendall Mason, and freshman Ashley Chaconas, non of whom are really experienced at all.

Mason probably has the edge and may start the season opener against George Mason. Last season she saw time in three games, totaling 31:19 minutes with three saves, allowing four goals.

Once again an athletic season did not quite live up to its expectations. The men’s lacrosse team looked like a shell of itself of the last four years, the softball team started out hot and sunk fast and missed out on the play-offs, and the baseball team suffered a second straight nine win campaign. But this season was about the women’s lacrosse team. The team is no longer a gimme’ win for teams and in her first year as coach Kelly Berger took the team to their first ever America East Conference Championship, where they lost by just one goal. There are a lot of bright spots heading into the future after this season, even with some down teams. But as for this years awards:

Top Coach

Kelly Berger, Women’s Lacrosse

It should be no surprise who the top coach award should go to this season. Once again, in just her first season Kelly Berger got the team into no only their first AEC tournament in four years, but their first ever AEC Championship. In the last few years the team was one that could not really compete in the AEC, but that all changed with the coaching change that the athletic department made last summer. This year the team beat everybody they were supposed to beat, and played some good lacrosse against some quality teams. While they were near elimination from the tournament they got a big road win to clinch a berth, upset undefeated (in conference play) University at Albany in the first round, and lost by just one to Boston University. In just one year Berger turned the team into one that never could quite get the win, into a favorite for next year’s championship.

Male Freshman of the Spring

Nick Doub, Men’s Lacrosse

It’s not very often that an unproven freshman comes in mid-season and takes over a starting spot that was held by the team’s leading scorer, but Nick Doube did just that. He replaced Bobby Stockton, who at that point led the team with 12 goals, in the starting midfield and shined. While he ended the season with four goals and two assists, what made him keep his spot was his ability on defense and his superb passing skills kept him in the lineup for not only this year, but most likely for the next three years of his career.

Female Freshman of the Spring

Jamie Fahey, Women’s Lacrosse

Jamie Fahey was a major reason the women’s lacrosse team ended where they did. Not only did she play lock-down defense, but when she got the ball she was always a threat to take it up for a goal. With exceptional speed and great ball handling, she looks like she’s going to be one of the top players on the team for years to come. After her season she was named to the All-Rookie Team, Rookie of the Year, Second Team All-AEC, and was named to the Mid-Atlantic Second team by the Women’s Lacrosse Coaches’ Association and All-Rookie team by womenslacrosse.com

Best Male Performance:

Keith Onto, Men’s Track and Field, 7,239 points in Decathlon

The decathlon was an event invented to find out who the best athlete in the world is, and when it mattered the most Keith Onto had a beyond stellar performance in as he won at the AEC Championships with 7,239 points. He won the 400-meter dash, 110-meter hurdles, long jump, high jump, Javelin, and Discus, finished second in the 100-meter dash and shot put, third in the 1,500-meter run and pole vault. The second place finished totaled just 6,662 points.

Best Female Performance

Emily Coady, Women’s Lacrosse, Eight Goals in AEC Tournament

While many players had great single game performances, nothing compared to the two game performances Emily Coady had at the AEC tournament. In an upset of UAlbany in the semi-finals Coady scored four goals in a two goal victory. Going into that game UAlbany was undefeated in conference play, but Coady’s performance lifted UMBC past the Great Danes and into their first ever AEC championship game, where once again, she shined. While the team ended up losing in the finals to heavily favored Boston U, Coady scored four goals for a second straight game as the team lost by just one goal. Her eight goals in two games nearly gave UMBC a championship, and left them as a serious contender for next year.

Best Moment

Women’s Lacrosse Upsets UAlbany, 11-9 in AEC Tournament

I’ve been mentioning the game the entire time, it was a huge upset. UAlbany was heavily favored, had a 13-2 overall record and were 6-0 in conference play, and beat UMBC in the regular season on UMBCs own turf. But when it mattered the most UMBC got their revenge with an 11-10 victory over the Great Danes to make it to their first ever AEC Championship game.

Most Improved Male Athlete

Brian Klukowicz, Baseball

Even though the Baseball team struggled for a second straight season, Brian Klukowicz gave the team hope for the future. As a freshman he appeared in just eight games and made 18 at-bats. He had just one hit. But this year Klukowicz became a very reliable hitter that the team can build around. He played in ever game, started all but three, hit .286 with four home runs, and reached base 35% of the time. He also led the team in runs with 26, and had 17 RBIs.

Most Improved Female Athlete

Erika Braerman, Women’s Lacrosse

It’s hard to say she improved because she was very good last year, but was just in a different role. Last season Erika Braerman just had to be a solid passer who could help set up the offense, this year, she was the offense. Braerman went from scoring nine goals with 11 assists last year to leading the team with 54 points off 32 goals and a team high 22 points. It did not take long for Braerman to grow into her new role, and with her return next season, the team has a lot of hope for a championship.

Unsung Male Athlete

Mike Camardo, Men’s Lacrosse

How much more unsung can you get than Mike Camardo. The man very well may be the best player the team has ever had and he’s never even made it to the first team All-AEC. He may not have the sexiest position, long stick midfielder, but he is great at what he does. He’s not a guy who is going to score a lot, just one goal and two assists this year, but defensively he is phenomenal. He once again led the team with 54 ground balls and 36 caused turnovers. Camardo’s job was to shut down the opposing offense, and make chances for his offense, and that is just what he did.

Unsung Female Athlete

Kate Quick, Women’s Lacrosse

This year was about the high powered offense the women’s lacrosse team had the outscored their opponents 223-160, but lost in all that was a great play of former first team All-AEC goalie Kate Quick. In 10032:08 minutes she saved 126 goals and helped make all of that offense happen. While she did not have nearly as much success as last year, she was still a staple in goal, starting all 18 games the Retrievers played, and did her part to not only save shots, but set up the defense however the team needed.

Fan’s Choice Male Athlete of the Spring

Victor Gilreath, Men’s Track and Field

Coming off an incredibly impressive winter season, Gilreath absolutely dominated in the fall season, totaling seven medals in six events, including four gold medals in the triple jump and one silver medal in the high jump.

Fan’s Choice Female Athlete of the Spring

Amanda Fefel, Softball

While the softball team sputtered in conference play and missed making the AEC tournament, Amanda Fefel capped of a phenomenal career with a great season. This season she led the team in nearly every offensive category, totaling 53 hits, 13 home runs, 35 RBIs, 101 total bases, a .631 slugging percentage, and reaching base 40 percent of the time. She was also second on the team with a .331 batting percentage and 33 runs. But she also dominated on the mound, leading the team with a 2.64 ERA and four saves. This year she also broke the all-time UMBC softball home run record, hitter her 41st career home run, became the only retriever named to four straight first-team all-conference teams, and earned an ECAC all-star selection.

Male Athlete of the Spring

Victor Gilreath, Men’s Track and Field

Once again, Gilreath was just absolutely dominant in his second season since transferring from University of Maryland and when it mattered the most he did great. Gilreath won gold at the America East Conference Championship with a leap of 15.45 meters, breaking a 19-year-old championship record. He also started the season with three straight gold medals, a third place finish at the IC4A Championships and a 43rd place finish at the NCAA Regional Championships.

Female Athlete of the Spring

Emily Coady, Women’s Lacrosse

She may be just a sophomore, but Emily Coady has proven to be the future of the women’s lacrosse team. This year she led the team with 35 goals and added eight assists to finish second on the team with 43 total points. She also finished fourth on the team with 20 ground balls. Emily Coady proved right away in her freshman season that she was going to be a very reliable player for the women’s lacrosse team, but this year she took her game to an all-new level. Even though she missed being named to an All-Conference team she ran the high powered offense from behind the net, opened up everybody else for good opportunities, and created her own. In the AEC tournament she scored four goals in both games as the fourth-seeded Retrievers upset UAlbany and came up just one goal shy against Boston U in the conference finals.

**Photos of Kelly Berger, track and field athletes, and Brian Klukowicz courtesy of UMBC athletics.

The fact that an assistant coach is taking over means that the athletic department made a coaching change for reasons other than poor performance. Actually the team had their best season in a while and we one win away from the conference tournament and look to be in perfect shape to be contenders next year or the following year. Connor probably left for personal reasons.

Kelly Berger served as Connor’s assistant for the last two years and was named the head coach today.

“I’m really excited,” Berger said. “I know I have a lot to learn, but I feel I’ve had wonderful mentors and believe they have prepared me very well. I’m excited for what the future will bring and I know I have a great administration behind me to support me.”

“Kelly did an outstanding job as our top assistant the last two seasons, and I believe she is ready to step up and coach our Retriever women’s lacrosse team,” Dr. Brown said. “She has been a success as both a player and an assistant coach, and I expect the same as a head coach and look forward to great things from our women’s lacrosse team.”