The Green Terror Women’s lacrosse locker room is nearly unrecognizable from a year ago. The scene lacks All-American attacker Brittany Baer and All-Centennial goalkeeper Leanne Hollinger, along with four other senior players. Eleven of the twenty-five girls are new to the program and are gearing up for their freshman season. And yet, the hopes of a championship season are as high as ever.
“I think that this team most definitely has the potential to win the Centennial Conference Championship,” says junior midfielder Steph Nichols. “I think that this team has so much potential to out-perform past seasons. With so many new players, our competitors won’t know what they are up against.”
To make it to the championship, the Green Terror look to use their experienced players to lead the young team into the playoffs. Nichols, and fellow All-CC midfielder Paige Messersmith, along with key defender Erin McDonnell, senior attackers Lisa Jurd and Brittany Lines, are all expected to be leaders for the Terror this year.
The team overall feels that they are better conditioned for the upcoming season, and hope this training will lead to fast starts and securing victories. Messersmith explained, “This offseason we really focused on our conditioning and fundamental skills to set the tone for the upcoming season… As a team we are really focusing on starting games off strong. Last season we would get behind early and have to fight are way back to get the win.” Head Coach Muffie Bliss agrees that the overall vigor of the team is going to be an advantage heading into the season. “Our fitness and speed are strong and we will be looking to utilize these qualities in key games,” says Bliss.
With so many new faces the team is sure to differ from years past. However, Messersmith and Nichols both think it will be for the better. “The freshmen are really changing the dynamic of the team for the better. They bring great energy and enthusiasm to the field,” said Messersmith. Nichols agreed, saying, “Although this presents the challenge of getting to know many new players’ styles of play, this also offers a new team dynamic and opportunity for great improvement and success in the season… We have built strong relationships off the field, which we are able to translate and show on the field.”
The locker room may be changing, but for the Green Terror Women’s Lacrosse team, the goal of winning the Centennial Conference Championship will always stay the same.
