April 2, 2003

The Team: The Blue Jays are 6-2 overall and 4-1 in the American Lacrosse Conference after defeating Northwestern, 14-7, Friday and Vanderbilt, 8-5, Sunday in Nashville, TN.

Recapping the Week: Junior midfielder Kate Barcomb (Middlebury, VT/Middlebury) scored three goals and added two assists to lead Hopkins to the 14-7 win over Northwestern. Senior attacker Meghan Burnett (Auburn, NY/Auburn) recorded three goals and one assist, while freshman midfielder Kelley Putnam (Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown) added three goals in the win. Senior attacker Liz Holland (Catonsville, MD/Mount de Sales) scored three goals and assisted on another in the 8-5 win over Vanderbilt.

McDonald Named ALC Player of the Week: Jen McDonald was named the American Lacrosse Conference Player of the Week, the league announced Tuesday. McDonald stopped nine shots in the win over the Wildcats, and made 10 saves versus the Commodores, many on shots from point-blank range. She also picked up six ground balls in the two league victories, and leads the team with 3.00 ground balls per game. McDonald, who has started all six games this season and played all but 11 minutes, ranks second in the conference and 14th in the nation with a 7.55 goals against average. Additionally, her 52.4 save percentage puts her third in the league and 22nd in the country.

Barcomb, Holland Sets Career Highs: Kate Barcomb established career highs in assists and points with her three-goal, two-assist performance in Friday's win over Northwestern. Liz Holland's four points in Sunday's win over Vanderbilt were also a carer high.

Pearce Has Scoring Streak Snapped: Junior attacker Heidi Pearce (Chestertown, MD/St. Andrew's) did not score a point in Sunday's win over Vanderbilt, the first time in her career she was held without a point. Pearce had scored at least one point in all 44 games of her career until Sunday, a JHU Division I record for points in consecutive games. Additionally, Pearce had scored a goal in 25 straight games before being held without a goal in Friday's win over Northwestern.

A Tough Schedule: The Blue Jays again play a challenging schedule this season, facing seven teams ranked in this week's Brine/IWLCA poll. Hopkins opened the season against No. 2 Duke, and traveled to No. 18 Ohio State on March 14. Last weekend JHU defeated No. 19 Northwestern and No. 20 Vanderbilt in a pair of conference games. The Blue Jays' next two games will also come against ranked teams, as Hopkins hosts No. 9 Penn State Monday and travels to top-ranked Maryland next Saturday. JHU hosts No. 11 North Carolina on Sunday, April 27, in a makeup game.

Burnett Leads Hopkins: Meghan Burnett has led the Hopkins offense through the first half of the season. She leads the team with 13 goals, 11 assists, and 24 points, and is the only player on the team to register a point in all eight games this year.

Strong Out of the Gate: Hopkins has out-scored its opponents, 44-24, in the first half this season. The Blue Jays took control early during both wins last weekend, scoring the first four goals of each game. In its season-opener JHU jumped out to a 6-2 lead over No. 2 Duke before the Blue Devils rallied for the win, and in its next game Hopkins scored 11 of the first 13 goals en route to a 12-7 victory over William & Mary. In their other two home games the Blue Jays jumped out to a 7-1 leads in wins over Pennsylvania and Davidson.

Pulling Double Duty: Hopkins sophomore defender Lacey-Leigh Hentz (Hampstead, MD/North Carroll) has started all eight games on the Blue Jay defense this season, leading the team with 17 caused turnovers and adding 20 ground balls. Additionally, Hentz has sung the national anthem in each of JHU's last three home games.

Blue Jays Among ALC Leaders: Meghan Burnett leads the American Lacrosse Conference with 1.38 assists per game, ranks sixth with 3.00 points per game, and is ninth with 2.75 ground balls per game. Lacey-Leigh Hentz is third in the league and 20th in the nation with 2.13 caused turnovers a game, while Heidi Pearce ranks ninth with 1.50. Jen McDonald ranks fourth with 3.00 ground balls per game, while senior midfielder Erinn Dennis (Wilton, NY/Saratoga Springs) is ninth with 1.38 draw controls a game. As a team, Hopkins ranks fourth in the conference and 24th in the country by averaging 10.38 goals per game. The Blue Jays rank second in the ALC and 10th in the nation by allowing 7.50 goals per game. JHU leads the league and ranks seventh in Division I with 33.12 ground balls per game, and is fifth in the conference with 9.62 draw controls a game.

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