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| Photo by BEN RUEHLMANN Seniors Summer Foster and Anne Marie Nash double team an opponent from Bridgewater College. |
The Virginia Wesleyan women’s lacrosse team is off to one of the best starts in team history. The Lady Marlins, who hold an 11-2 record overall and a 5-1 record in conference play, are getting through the season with exceptional play from their defense. “The defense has been outstanding, they have kept us in a lot of games,” said freshman midfielder Brittney Gricius.
The defense that has allowed 69 goals this season is a highlight for this year’s team, who are anchored in the back by goalkeeper Margie Baker. With only two regular-season games left, the Marlins know that they need to finish strong to be able to have the number one seed in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Tournament. “Every ODAC game is important for us to win,” said sophomore attack player Amy Clark. “We want to finish out the season strong, we want the number one seed.”
The Marlins, who take on the Hornets of Lynchburg College on Saturday, will need help from rival Roanoke College who plays Washington and Lee University on Friday. “If W&L loses on Friday and we win on Saturday, then we will get the number one seed but if we both win or we lose then we get the number two seed,” Gricius said. After losing their first two games the Marlins have been on a roll as of late, winning eleven straight. The dynamic trio if senior captain Anne Marie Nash, junior Megan Parris and sophomore Laura Wallace have been an added plus to this year’s team in scoring goals.
“Having more than one player with the ability score has made us very dangerous, and is one of the reasons why it is so difficult to stop us,” said Gricius. The trio, who have accounted for sixty-six percent of the tallies for the Marlins this year, have established themselves as forces to be reckoned with in the ODAC. During their current winning streak, the Marlins have given some vicious beating to some opponents while also had the ability to win the close games. The Lady Marlins, who were losing 6-5 at half-time in their March 27th game against Randolph-Macon College, were able to rally in the second half behind Nash’s five-goal performance to solidify the win 14-10. In the Marlins’ next game they handed Sweet Briar College an 11-6 loss, behind the output of 3 goals by Parris.
The Marlins, who have dominated the rivalry with the Captains of Christopher Newport University, once again won this year’s contest, by a count of 19-4. Led by Wallace with a five-goal, three assist game, the Marlins came out wanting a win and led by a score of 13-0 by half-time. The Marlins then traveled to North Carolina where they had to meet Guilford College and Greensboro College in a Saturday, Sunday match-up that resulted in going 2-0 for the road trip. Once again led by Wallace with ten goals for the two games, the women came out with decisive wins by the score of 16-4 over Guilford and 14-3 over Greensboro.
However the Marlins, who were ready to be done on the road, were once again quickly back in action at home against Bridgewater College. Leading 11-0 at half-time, the Marlins made a statement to the ODAC, en route to a 19-0 shellacking of the Eagles. The Marlins finally tied the record book last Saturday when they handed Marymount University their ninth loss of the season, beating them by a score of 12-3. The Marlins have now tied the Wesleyan record for most wins in a season and have broken the record for most consecutive wins. The women will go for the record book on Saturday when they travel to Lynchburg College for their second to last ODAC conference game, and will end the regular season with a home match against current ODAC last place Hollins University.
Baseball head coach Nick Boothe reached a milestone that has taken him 18 seasons to complete. On Sunday, Mar. 28, Boothe got his 400th career coaching win in the first game of a double-header against Tufts University. “It’s a good representative of the amount of work he has put into the program,” said assistant coach Kevin Flanagan, who played for Boothe while attending Wesleyan.
Some of Boothe’s accomplishments include:
1998’s Louisville Slugger Award for Excellence in Coaching
ODAC Coach of the Year in 1993, 1994, 1997 and 2000
Dixie Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1988
Led the Marlins to Regional Playoff berths in 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2003
Led the Marlins to ODAC championships in 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2003
Three year letterman during his baseball days at Old Dominion University
Words can not describe the type of season it has been for the Marlins’ baseball team. They began the season with some tough losses, both on and off the field. After losing a teammate and a friend to tragedy, baseball seemed to be the last thing on the players’ minds. On Saturday, the team paid tribute to Michael Snapp, a former Wesleyan player who lost his life last September in his own apartment on Shore Drive. “It was so hard to deal with,” said sophomore Brandon Hill. “But the only thing we can do for him is to win.”
Snapp’s parents, Ronald and Patricia, were in attendance as the team respectfully retired the jersey that was worn by Snapp. Though Snapp would not be able to watch his team go on to the field and play the double header that day, the team did the one thing that would have made him happy-won both games. Number three will forever be remembered as the Marlins’ first season without him comes to a close. “We have to play every game like it’s our last,” said senior Paul Johnson on WAVY-TV news.
After starting the season with a few close losses, the team pulled things together and began dominating the league, winning 20 of their last 22 games. The Marlins are currently ranked number eight in the nation, and first in the ODAC. The Marlins’ have seven regular season games left before taking on the task of post season play. One of the more crucial match-ups remaining comes against ODAC rival Lynchburg College, who is currently number 16 in the nation and shares the number one spot in the conference with Wesleyan.
“We’re definitely playing as a unit right now,” said Hill. “That’s going to be very important going into the post-season.” Impressive pitching has been abundant for the Marlins’ lately. Senior Ace Purvis improved his record to 7-1 with a close win over Lagrange College. Junior Jason Jarrett improved his winning record to 6-0 over Eastern Mennonite University, which was game one of a double header that day. Game two was led by Derrick Rawlings, a senior pitcher who improved his winning record to 4-0. As the season winds down, the Marlins can’t look past the remaining games quite yet. They close the regular season with a double-header against the Hornets of Lynchburg College.
Keep an eye out for the Marlins in post-season play. They don’t expect their six game winning streak to end anytime soon, and the playoffs are right around the corner. Post-season play begins on April 29 at Lynchburg College Stadium.
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Devin Allen |
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Jaclyn Bailey |
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Janet Naclerio |
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