The Rocket

Issue date: 4/11/08 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Steve Reed Sophomore defenseman Stephanie Freeman carries the ball upfield in a game against Shippensburg earlier this year. [Click to enlarge]

The biggest number facing the Slippery Rock Lacrosse team this week may not be the No. 5 National ranking that Lock Haven University's lacrosse team took into their Tuesday game at Lock Haven, or the No. 4 National ranking that West Chester University possessed heading into the Rock's road game there.

Instead, the number looming large is 944.

That's the combined number of miles the team has traveled between the beginning of the week and the end of the week, as these two games constitute the longest road trip for the team, a three-game stretch that also includes a visit to Shippensburg University on April 16.

Prior to the trip, the team lost to visiting Millersville University last Sunday by an 18-4 score.

Junior Caitlin O'Brien continued to lead the team in scoring, registering two goals and an assist while seniors Jayme Timmons and Brooke Scholl added a goal each.

Ashley Winkelspecht was in net for the entire game, recording 18 saves.

As was the case with each game, the Rock was outmatched but displayed effort and determination throughout, as Scholl's goal occurred when the game was well out of reach with 59 seconds left in the match.

Unfortunately for the Rock, the first game of the stretch ended in a 23-3 loss as the Bald Eagles (8-2 overall, 5-1 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) lived up to their lofty ranking.

The loss dropped the Rock's overall record to 0-11 and brought its PSAC mark to 0-10. The team was overwhelmed by a Bald Eagle attack that registered 48 shots to the Rock's six.

Despite the pasting, the Rock again showed its heart and never-quit attitude, as O'Brien posted the game's second-to-last goal with 8:59 remaining.

The team also kept the Bald Eagles from scoring in the last five minutes of the match, playing its best defense of the game.

Timmons scored the Rock's first goal on an open position shot, and sophomore Stephanie Freeman brought the first period to a close with the Rock's second goal.

Winkelspecht registered 14 saves in the losing effort.

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