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April 16, 2003
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland women's lacrosse team heads to Charlottesville, Va., for the second time this season in hopes of putting another notch in its Atlantic Coast Conference belt. In early March, the Terrapins were able to wrap up the claim to the ACC regular season title and the number one seed in this weekend's tournament with a win over Virginia. The Terrapins will now look to put the finishing touches to their return to form in conference, starting with Friday's semifinal game against fourth-seeded North Carolina. Opening draw from Klockner Stadium is slated for 1:00 p.m.
The winner of Friday's game between the Terps and Tar Heels will go on to face the winner of the 3:30 p.m. game between No. 2 seed Duke and No. 3 seed Virginia in the tournament finals on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. The game will be televised by Comcast SportsNet, FOX Sports Net South and Sunshine Network.
The Terrapins - who head into this week 13-1 (3-0 ACC) - remain the nation's No. 2 team in the latest Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches' Association (IWLCA) poll. As it did a week ago, Maryland garnered 133 points -- seven shy of Loyola -- as the Greyhounds claimed the top spot with all seven first-place votes.
Tournament Notes
Maryland heads into the 2003 Atlantic Coast Conference tournament with a 3-0 conference record for the fourth time in its seven years in the league. In the three previous seasons Maryland has finished its ACC regular season without a loss -- all odd numbered seasons (1997, 1999, 2001) -- it has gone on to win the conference tournament.
The Terrapins also won the ACC tournament one year that it did not go undefeated (2000), making it four of the previous six tournaments that Maryland has left victorious.
Last year, Maryland became the first No. 4 seed to upset a No. 1 seed when it defeated Virginia, 15-12, in the semifinals. The Terps then went on to give North Carolina a run for their money in the finals before ultimately falling in defeat, 11-10.
The Terps have squared off with its semifinal opponent North Carolina four previous times in the ACC tournament -- twice in the semifinals (1998 and 1999) and twice in the finals (2000 and 2002) with the two schools each splitting a semifinal and final win apiece.
Terrapins versus the field in the ACC tournament: vs. Duke, 2-0; vs. UNC, 2-2; vs. Virginia, 5-0.
TerpNotes
Last week saw a pair of Terps have monster offensive weeks and the result was a pair of blowout wins. Junior Kelly Coppedge led the way as she posted 13 goals in two games en route to ACC Player of the Week honors. She bested her career high of five goals with six against William & Mary on Tuesday before doing herself one better with seven on Saturday against Johns Hopkins. Senior Sonia Judd topped Coppedge's six goals on Tuesday with seven of her own against the Tribe to go along with two assists before posting three goals as another two assists against JHU to close the week with 14 points of her own.
The big week for Maryland came on the heels of the team's lone loss of the season that occurred the weekend before against James Madison. The answer came in the form of a pair of wins where the opponents were outscored 40-10 and outshot 81-25 while the Terps won 40-of-54 draw controls.
Good news for the Terrapins last week came in the form of a successful return to the cage for goalkeeper Alexis Venechanos who injured her right knee against Georgetown. Venechanos played 55 minutes against Johns Hopkins making five saves while allowing just four goals. She is currently the ACC's leader in goals against average (6.27) and save percentage (.581).
Head coach Cindy Timchal now needs just eight wins to hit the 300 plateau for her career (includes games at Maryland and Northwestern). When she hits the mark, she will become the first coach in collegiate women's lacrosse to have done so. Her career record currently stands at 292-63 while her record in 13 years at Maryland stands at an amazing 215-23.
Against Johns Hopkins, the Terrapins had four players notch a hat trick or better. It was the first time this season that four players had scored as many goals in one game and the first since last year's George Mason game on May 3rd.
Sophomore Acacia Walker enters the ACC tourney as the league's leader in assists (1.57 per game) while ranking second in draw controls (2.14).
"D" The Difference
This year's Maryland team has a completely different look this year in many respects, but the one area that stands out as improved over last season is the Terps' look on the defensive end.
Through 14 games, the Terrapins are allowing 6.57 goals per game and has allowed just two opponents -- Penn State and Georgetown -- 10-goals in a game.
The Terp defense -- spearheaded by starting defenders Molly Lambert, Julie Shank, Greta Sommers and Laura Warren -- is clearly improved, already forcing 140 turnovers through 12 games (an average of 11.7 caused turnovers per game), but the most marked improvement of 2003 has come from the Terrapins' goalies.
As mentioned previously, senior Alexis Venechanos leads the ACC in save percentage and goals against average and has been instrumental to the Terrapins' success on the defensive end.
Head Coach Cindy Timchal
Head coach Cindy Timchal is in her 13th season at the helm of the Maryland women's lacrosse program. In her 12-plus years, she has established one of the most dominant teams in all of collegiate athletics as the Terrapins are 216-23 (.904) under her guidance, have earned 12 NCAA Tournament bids and have taken the crown eight times.
Timchal is one of the winningest coaches in the history of women's collegiate lacrosse. With the Terps' win over Princeton in the semifinals of the 2001 NCAA tournament, she tied the record of William Smith's Pat Genovese, who led all coaches with 267 wins. Despite a sub-par 2002 by Timchal's standards, she entered 2003 tied with Genovese on the all-time wins list with 279 while she is also in the all-time top five in games coached and winning percentage.
Timchal was selected as the '01 ACC Coach of the Year, her third time earning the honor. She has been chosen as National Coach of the Year twice and has coached players to All-American status 61 times in her career.
From the time of her arrival, Timchal has lost no more than three games in any one season, including a spectacular 21-0 season in 1999 and last year's 23-0 mark. She has led the Terps to the Final Four every year but one since coming to Maryland, reaching the title game an unbelievable 11 of the last 13 years.
Now in her 22nd season of coaching collegiate athletics overall, Timchal got her start at Northwestern where she led the Wildcats to the NCAA tournament five times in nine years. Her overall record (Maryland and Northwestern) currently stands at 292-63 (.823).
Timchal is assisted by a pair of her most successful proteges, Cathy Nelson and Jen Adams. Nelson is now the veteran of Terp assistants as she enters her fifth year. She is joined by Adams who is in her first season as a full-time coach after spending a year as an undergraduate assistant. From Nelson's freshman year in 1995 to Adams' senior season in 2001, the duo were a part of each of Maryland's seven-straight national championship seasons.
Timchal's Year-by-Year at Maryland
1991 NCAA Runners-up 14-3
1992 NCAA Champions 14-1
1993 NCAA Semifinalists 12-2
1994 NCAA Runners-Up 13-1
1995 NCAA Champions 17-0
1996 NCAA Champions 19-0
1997 NCAA Champions 21-1
1998 NCAA Champions 18-3
1999 NCAA Champions 21-0
2000 NCAA Champions 21-1
2001 NCAA Champions 23-0
2002 NCAA Quarterfinalists 11-10
2003 13-1
12+ Seasons @ Md. 216-23 (.904)
Terps Take ACC Regular Season
With its win over Virginia on March 11, Maryland completed the biggest turnaround it has had to since joining the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1997.
The Terrapins' impressive 11-8 win over the Cavaliers ended their ACC regular season and they did so without a blemish. After finishing last in the league with an 0-3 record a year ago, Maryland now claims the ACC regular season title, the top seed in this weekend's ACC tournament and a perfect conference record for the fourth time in its history.
Oddly enough, since 1997, the Terps have finished with a perfect regular season ACC record in each of its odd-numbered seasons with the exception now of 2003. In 1997, 1999, 2001 and 2003 combined, the Terrapins own a 12-0 league mark, while in '98, 2000 and 2002, the team stood at 3-6. In addition, Maryland's record in those odd seasons has been astounding as it owns a 77-2 mark in odd years since '97.
Terps Lauded
A year ago, Maryland was able to garner ACC Player of the Week recognition twice in the entire season. Now nearly two months into 2003, the honor has taken on a Maryland flare as six of the eight times it has been awarded, it has gone to a Terp.
With junior Kelly Coppedge being named the conference's player of the week for her play last week, Maryland has now taken the honor in six of the seven weeks it has played this year with Coppedge now taking it three times. The other honorees include freshman Delia Cox and seniors Sonia Judd and Alexis Venechanos.
Scoring Streak
On the heels of Sonia Judd's scoring streak falling by the wayside against Georgetown two weeks ago, the most notable streak in tact from last season now belongs to Kelly Coppedge who has scored in each of the last 17 games.
Judd Closing It Out In Style
Native Australian Sonia Judd has played the best that she has any of her four years at Maryland this season, ranking second on the team in scoring with 52 points (33 goals, 19 assists). She stands just two points from improving on the best season mark of her career (53) while the Terrapins have a minimum of five games still remaining.
In addition to earning Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week honors in week one, Judd surpassed the 100-point plateau for her career in Maryland's 10-8 win over UNC.
Judd entered this week second in the ACC in assists (1.46), fourth in points per game (3.7 avg.) and fifth in goals (2.36 avg.).
Coppedge Having A Big Year
It was announced earlier this year that Kelly Coppedge was nominated on the initial list of Tewaaraton Trophy nominees, an award which recognizes the top male and female in collegiate lacrosse. Judging by the way she has played up to this point in the season, her candidacy is more than viable.
Coppedge, a junior from Annapolis, is the leading returning scorer on this year's Terrapin team as well as its lone returning All-American. She currently leads the ACC and is third nationally in scoring with 4.5 points per game (63 total) and has been named ACC Player of the week three times this season.
Through 13 games, Coppedge is first in the ACC in scoring (4.5 ppg), goals (3.4 gpg), fourth in assists (1.23 apg) and seventh in caused turnovers (1.5 pg).
Coppedge's seven goals against Johns Hopkins last weekend currently ranks as tied for the best goal output in any single game in the NCAA this year.
Super Rook
Freshman Delia Cox has been one of the league's top performers in just her first season at the collegiate level. The native of Newbury, Mass., is currently fourth in the ACC in ground balls with 3.2 per game while leading all Terp freshmen in scoring.
Through 14 games, Cox -- a nominee for ACC Rookie of the Year -- has scored 23 goals and passed out two assists for 25 points, fourth-most on the team overall.
Shooting Stars
As a team, the Terps have a solid .452 shooting percentage this season (compared to their opposition's .368), but what is even more notable is how much more the Terrapins are firing away than their opposition.
Maryland has outshot its opponent in all but three games this year and overall, it is taking way more shots than its opponents (398-250), an average of 28.4 shots per game compared to the opposition's 17.9.
Tri-Captains
The captains of this year's Maryland team are seniors Sonia Judd, Julie Shank and Alexis Venechanos. The trio were chosen after a vote was conducted by their teammates as representatives of this year's squad.
Scouting No. 4 Seed UNC
The University of North Carolina women's lacrosse team is led by Jenny Slingluff Levy, who is in her seventh season with the Tar Heels. Under her guidance, UNC has posted a 64-41 record.
North Carolina has one of the best records of Maryland's all-time opponents as the Tar Heels are 5-8 versus the Terrapins. The Terps won this year's meeting by a narrow 10-8 margin.
The Tar Heels have had a hard time this year after losing some key seniors a year ago. UNC is now 5-7 (0-3 ACC) and ranked 14th in the latest IWLCA poll.
UNC has been led in scoring this year by Beth Ames who has posted 27 goals and three assists. Aside from Ames, the Tar Heels have just one scorer over 20 points on the season as Melissa McCarthy has 10 goals and 10 assists. Jazmine Norton and Meghan Kelly lead the Heels on the defensive end.
Series record: Maryland is 8-5 all-time versus North Carolina. The Terps won this year after losing two meetings last year. Prior to 2002, Maryland had run off six-straight wins in the series.
Scouting No. 2 Seed Duke
Head coach Kerstin Kimel is in her eighth season at the helm of the Duke women's lacrosse program. Kimel was an All-American at Maryland in 1992 and '93 and a 1993 graduate of the school. In her time at Duke, she has compiled a 81-52 record and has won no less than 10 games in each of the last six seasons.
This year's Duke team, currently ranked third nationally, is one of the best the school has ever fielded. The Blue Devils are 11-2 with losses to the Terps in overtime and a surprise road loss to Vanderbilt.
Freshman Katie Chrest leads the Blue Devils in scoring with 40 points this year but it has been a team effort for Duke as three other players (Lauren Gallagher, Kate Kaiser, Jessica Bennett) have also posted over 25 points this season.
Megan Huether has been strong in goal, posting a .541 save percentage and a 6.38 goals against average.
Series record: Maryland is 8-2 all-time versus Duke. The Blue Devil's lone wins in the series came last year and in 1998 with both wins taking place in Durham.
Scouting No. 3 Seed Virginia
Julie Myers is in her seventh season at her alma mater, Virginia. A 1990 grad of the this year's ACC host, she has a 110-38 record with the 'Hoos.
The Cavaliers are 11-3 this season and ranked fourth in the latest IWLCA poll, giving the ACC three of the nation's top four teams.
Virginia is the ACC's leading scoring team as it averages 14 goals per contest. On the flip side, it also has the league's lowest-rated scoring defense as it allows 8.38 goals per game.
Lauren Aumiller again leads the Cavs in scoring as she has put up an average of 4.23 points per game, second most in the league behind Maryland's Kelly Coppedge. Virginia actually boasts a trio of players with 50 points or more in Aumiller (65), Cary Chasney (55) and Amy Appelt (53).
Andrea Pfeiffer has gotten the majority of the minutes in goal for UVa, and has allowed 107 goals versus 87 saves (.450 sv. pct.).
Series record: Maryland owns a 28-8 record all-time against Virginia. The Terps' lone loss in the last 12 meetings came last year in the regular season. Maryland won this year's meeting at Klockner Stadium, 11-8.
