The Massachusetts women’s lacrosse team responded to a double digit loss to Boston College a week ago by defeating an overmatched Siena, 14-5.
For the first time in this young season, UMass (2-1) dictated play for all four quarters, something head coach Jana Drummond had been eager to see after the first two games. The Minutewomen outshot the Saints (1-2) in every quarter, finished with a 30-13 disparity in shots on goal and notably won the ground ball battle 29-6.
“If we put two halves together, we could be right up there in the top five,” Drummond said, a sentiment she echoed from both of UMass’ previous games. “Having that [belief] and executing out there was really helpful. And you really saw some of the work they put in this last week on the field today.”
Amy Moreau excelled in her usual role as a two-way midfielder. UMass generated effective offense by moving the ball into dangerous areas very quickly in the shot clock, with Moreau acting as the engine by racing past midfield and into the attack area off of draw controls and Siena turnovers, limiting the Saints’ ability to set up their defense and catching them off guard.
Defensively, she took the responsibility of being the primary defender against Mary Soures, who holds the Siena program record for most career goals at 154 and has scored eight goals through two games this season. Soures did not record a point against the Minutewomen on two shots.
“On defense, we knew who their drivers were,” Moreau said. “Once we had those slides there and we were working as a unit, we were able to shut them down.”
“If we’re going to be honest, I always like [Moreau’s] play,” Drummond said with a smile. “She’s strong and she executes what we need to from the game plan.”
Drummond, as Moreau did, also credited the communication levels and togetherness of the whole team to play as well as they did against the Saints. Both on the field and on the sideline, UMass players were busy shouting out plays and assignments all game.
“Yes, [Moreau] does a great job slowing them down,” Drummond said. “But [the] seven that are out there with her really help support and communicate so she can do what she needs to do and play [as a] unified defense.”
The Minutewomen faced an unexpected setback in the second quarter, when Kylee Bowen was sent off for picking up her second yellow card with 2:50 to go. She was called for cross-checking late in the first quarter, then received the second yellow when she swung her stick at a Siena player and grazed the top of her head. As soon as the whistle blew, Bowen leaned her head back as if she knew she had made a consequential mistake.
“It’s definitely a learning experience,” Drummond said of Bowen’s ejection. “I think the first thing she said to me was, ‘I’m sorry, that won’t ever happen again.’ Sometimes those things happen, but we are very versatile on the offensive end, so we just put the next person in line and we were able to execute and find success there.”
Drummond said Bowen not being able to play in the second half wasn’t even discussed at halftime. Instead, her message to the team was: “This is your time. Your number’s called, so get out there and do what we need you to do.”
The Minutewomen responded aptly, filling up the stat sheet with eight different scorers by the final whistle, including Bowen, who scored twice before her ejection.
“It’s just, as a team, having confidence that we trust in our scout, and we know what they’re going to do,” Moreau said. “They were sending early slides. We were working all week on hitting that slip and seeing the backside of the field and working the ball at all angles.”
“We just leaned on each other and really had a team offense.”
UMass will stay at home for its next game against Dartmouth, set for 12 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25, at Garber Field.
Jedhi lee can be reached at [email protected].
