Nov. 10, 2014
Swezey Interview | Duckenfield Interview
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Strength in numbers can’t be understated. But Cathy Swezey also believes strength in experience goes a long way.
And Vanderbilt’s lacrosse coach exudes confidence that her team possesses both qualities.
With 15 juniors and seniors setting the pace, the Commodores recently wrapped up a successful Fall Ball competition.
“The fall went great,” said Swezey, who is in her 18th season at Vanderbilt. “From day one, you could see a difference in our team in a sense of we’re older. We have another year of experience under our belt. The majority of our team (in the past), as much as 20 kids, has been freshmen and sophomores and we have been led with smaller junior and senior classes. Those two classes the last few years did a great job considering how small they were. But we finally have the mass of our team in the upper classes. It shows in our confidence more than anything and in our experience.”
Vanderbilt went 5-3-1 against outside competition in October, playing well at tournaments held at the United States Naval Academy and Duke.
Experience shined bright as Swezey lauded the performances of midfielders Meggie Ramzy (senior captain), Emma Dagres (junior) and Kelly Chandler (junior), attacker Jill Doherty (sophomore) and the defense of senior captains Alex Duckenfield and Maggie Forker.
The Commodores lost just three starters from last year and brings back 21 lettermen. In fact, eight of last year’s 12 starters were sophomores and juniors.
Leading the charge are six seniors – Rebecca Ryan, Maddie Kratz, Gabby Nesi and Duckenfield, Forker and Ramzy.
“I am really proud of our seniors and how they led our team this fall,” Swezey said. “They are making a statement on the field, but also have made real strides in the example they are setting for the underclassmen. They are vocal leaders and know how to demand a lot from their teammates, while still being supportive. They will be critical to our success this year.”
In addition, the team’s nine juniors have been hard to miss. Along with Chandler and Dagres, Alexa Kunowsky, Amanda Lockwood, Mallory Schonk have started games their first two seasons on campus.
“Our whole junior class is worth mentioning,” Swezey said. “They are literally the core of our team and a lot of them have started their entire careers. Having them back and having that third year of experience under their belt is going to be big.”
Now those classes are one year older, one year hungrier and eager to prove something as Vanderbilt switches conferences and begins its first year in the BIG EAST Conference when the regular season begins in February.
“We’ve had some changes this year that have ignited us a bit,” Swezey said. “We have a new schedule. We’re playing in a new conference. While we’ll miss being in the ALC (American Lacrosse Conference) and the competitive level that brought, I think our kids are excited about a fresh start. We did have an exceptional fall. We beat several ranked teams this fall, which I don’t know we’ve accomplished the last few years. We had a couple losses we wish we could get back. But I think we built upon our confidence and we lost very little of that.”
