Feb. 6, 2015
Swezey Interview | Duckenfield Interview | Game Notes | Live Stream of Saturday’s Game
After nearly two decades at the helm of the Vanderbilt lacrosse program, head coach Cathy Swezey still gets excited about every season opener.
Saturday’s tilt against Kennesaw State at 1 p.m. at the VU Lacrosse Complex is no exception (the game can be watched on vucommodores.com). But Swezey admits the 2015 campaign feels different.
For one, the Commodores have a new conference home – the BIG EAST Conference. VU was a charter member of the American Lacrosse Conference, which disbanded last spring after 13 years. With a new league come new rivals and the ending of familiar ones. Old foes Northwestern and Ohio State aren’t on the schedule and the Commodores will face off against Marquette and Villanova for the first time.
And for the first time in the 21st century, Susan Ellis won’t be by Swezey’s side. Ellis, Swezey’s best friend and former college teammate, retired last spring after 15 years as a Vanderbilt assistant and associate head coach.
But the excitement of a new conference and a new assistant coach (former Le Moyne head coach Beth Hewitt) excites Swezey, not to mention how optimistic she is about the potential of the 2015 squad – one of her most experienced teams in recent memory.
“It just feels new,” said Swezey, who begins her 18th season at Vanderbilt. “It could almost be the first year of my career. It feels different. It feels new. I’m excited for the year. If nothing else, I’ve learned you do have to take one game at a time. Certainly, I’m not going to be looking ahead. Right now we’re looking to Kennesaw. But I feel like we have the ability and potential to do big things.”
Her enthusiasm stems from a roster filled with nine returning starters and 20 returning letterwinners from 2014. After playing young talent often over the last two seasons, Swezey now has a stacked cupboard with 14 upperclassmen – six seniors and eight juniors.
Senior captain Alex Duckenfield has started 35 games the last two seasons and juniors Mallory Schonk and Alexa Kunowsky have started all 34 games of their careers. In all 14 returners made starts last year.
“We were doing a drill in practice and I looked down the field and I could see player after player who is good enough to play for us,” Swezey said. “A lot of people who are good enough to start who won’t be starting. I think we have a lot of depth and we’re feeling really excited about it.”
Offensively, the Commodores return 74 percent of last year’s scoring. Six players scored at least 14 goals last year, including three with more than 20.
“As far as the attack goes, I think we have a ton of firepower,” Swezey said. “Different style players so they all bring something different and that’s good. If you’re a multi-faceted offense, you’re harder to stop. A lot of these girls have been playing together for three years now so their chemistry is probably at an all-time high. So I think that might be a big part of it. But we definitely have a lot of kids who have the ability to score.”
Heading the charge up front is attacking duo Mallory Schonk and Kelly Chandler. The pair of juniors was tabbed Preseason All-BIG EAST selections after stellar sophomore campaigns.
Schonk, a unanimous selection from Perry Hall, Md., led the team with 27 assists and 52 points, ranking third with 25 goals. Chandler, who moves over from the midfield but will still take the draws, is the team’s top returning scorer after notching 27 goals. The Salisbury, Md., native, also led the team with 50 draw controls despite playing hurt and missing two games the last half of the season.
“Mallory is just such a well-rounded attacker,” Swezey said. “She has fabulous skills. She has a great eye for the eight-meter. She can see the ball well but she is a huge 1 v. 1 threat as well. To be honest, she is one of the best shooters I’ve ever coached. She has had a great preseason and I think she is feeling real good about her game right now, too.
“As far as Kelly goes, Kelly has been a huge, instrumental part of our teams the last couple years. She is a huge competitor. By moving her to offense, we feel her output is going to really grow.”
Sophomores Jill Doherty and Caroline Peters are also moving to attack from midfield after heavy contributions as freshmen. Doherty, from Reading, Mass., led all freshmen with 20 goals, 17 assists, 37 points, 30 draw controls and 16 ground balls and was named to the All-ALC Tournament Team after scoring five goals against Northwestern. Peters, a Rockfield, Md., native, also played in all 17 games and had seven goals and two assists.
In the midfield, senior captain Meggie Ramzy, a native of Lutherville, Md., has played in more games than any current Commodore, seeing action in 47 games.
Junior Alexa Kunowsky, who hails from Severna Park, Md., returns after scoring 16 goals and dishing out five assists to go along with 22 ground balls and 21 draw controls. She has started every game of her career.
Fellow junior Emma Dagres, from Weston, Mass., is arguably the fastest player on the team and is a threat to score every time she shoots. She had 14 goals and six assists last year, along with 28 ground balls and 14 caused turnovers.
“When she turns it on, there are few people who can catch her,” Swezey said. “That’s just a God-given talent. But you take it beyond that she is a great finisher and easily our best midfield defender. She brings a lot to the table.”
Defensively, two key cogs of a successful unit return and two young pieces step in as the Commodores said goodbye to All-ALC First Team selection Alyssa Dunlap and Brandi Byner.
Leading the charge are senior captains Alex Duckenfield and Maggie Forker. Duckenfield, a native of Rutledge, Pa., played in all 17 games last year, starting 15. She is the team’s top returning leader in ground balls (31) and caused turnovers (15). Forker, who hails from Havertown, Pa., made eight starts last year and collected 21 ground balls.
Expected to make their first career starts are sophomore Eliza Clemens, a native of Ruxton, Md., who played in nine games last year, and freshman Margaret Fee, a US Lacrosse First-Team All-American out of Needham, Mass.
“Maggie Forker and Alex Duckenfield both have a ton of playing experience and they’re anchoring the defense with two young players,” Swezey said. “You can have great individual defenders, then you can have a great unit which exists really on chemistry and that’s what these guys. Maggie and Duck are definitely leaders and their communication style has been really effective. They get the most out of their teammates. These guys have clamped down. This is one of the most solid defenses we’ve had in a while. And that’s taking nothing away from Brandi and Alyssa, who were unbelievable athletes. As a unit, they’re really performing well.”
Back in goal will be senior Maddie Kratz. The 5-foot-10 goalkeeper from Wilton, Conn., made 121 saves in 15 starts last year. She ended the season on a tear with 64 saves over the last seven games.
Also fighting for playing time is 5-foot-4 sophomore Callahan Kent from Norwell, Mass. Kent played in five games and started two. She made three saves and played in goal the entire game of an upset victory over No. 9 and previously undefeated Johns Hopkins.
“I think Maddie and Cal are both extremely good and I think our team is 100 times a better just because of the two of them,” Swezey said. “They both had great preseasons, too. If I had to make a lineup today, Maddie has a slight edge. I think she has to keep her game on top because I think Cal will be competing all year. I like that they are competing. I think they have a healthy competition and a healthy relationship. I think they are making each other better.”
Though the Commodores are in a new conference, their schedule doesn’t get any easier. Swezey continues to schedule tough competition, as starting on Feb. 22 against No. 19 Denver, the Commodores will play eight straight games against ranked opponents in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association preseason poll. All eight of those teams made the NCAA Tournament as well.
The BIG EAST accounts for two of those – No. 4 Florida and No. 17 Georgetown. The Gators, who swept the ALC regular-season and tournament crowns, were picked to win the BIG EAST in a preseason coaches poll. Georgetown followed in second and Connecticut in third. The Commodores were picked to finish fourth.
“The BIG EAST is going to be a strong conference and I have a lot of respect for where the programs in the conference are headed,” Swezey said. “I think they’re all pushing the limits on where their programs can go. I have a lot of respect for the coaches in this league. I think it is going to be great for our recruiting. We are going to be playing in the Northeast a lot and people don’t have to hop on a plane to come see us. I think that is going to be great for families and the recruiting process.”
With a new chapter beginning, the Commodores are eager to see how their 20th season in program history unfolds.
And Swezey is just as excited as anybody.
“That competitive fire in me has not gone out,” she said. “And you can ask my team about that. They would describe me as one of the most competitive people I know. I still get excited. The nice thing is, and maybe this comes with getting older and more experience is, it’s fun. Competing is fun and playing is fun and coaching your team is fun. I think it is important to remember why you do it.”
