Archive for April 14, 2012
April 14, 2012 — A tale of two second halves
Today’s Game of the Day
Hightstown Peddie School (N.J.) at Lawrenceville (N.J.)
Two of the great powers in the New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association meet up this afternoon. Peddie is 6-0 this season, while Lawrenceville is looking to bounce back from a 19-16 loss to The Hun School of Princeton (N.J.). This could be a preview of the Prep “A” final.
Last night, there were two second-half performance of note in the NCAA. And they all had the same roots, if different in execution.
In Annapolis, Md., the United States Naval Academy had an offensive explosion and ran riot over American University using speed and crisp passing, scoring 10 goals in the second half to run out 19-6 winners. The Mids, led by Loren Generi’s seven goals, kept such tight possession on the ball that they allowed AU very little possession in the second half. The Eagles had exactly one goal in the second term.
A few hundred miles away in Evanston, Ill., Northwestern similarly allowed only one goal in the second half, to North Carolina. The matchup between two of the three best teams in the county turned into a tactical matchup in the second term, with the Tar Heels trying to slow down the Wildcats in any way possible. Carolina committed some 38 fouls during the contest, but perhaps the one that was the most costly was the yellow card Caileigh Sindal picked up with two minutes to go. Though UNC managed somehow to get a shorthanded goal from Becky Lynch during Northwestern’s extra-man opportunity, it might have been a much more interesting last two minutes of the teams played at even strength.
Last night showed that Kelly Amonte-Hiller and Cindy Timchal learned a little something from their time at the University of Maryland. Timchal, who won seven national titles in College Park, always seemed to have a little something extra for the second half of every game.
And, as it turns out that Amonte-Hiller, who has won six national titles at Northwestern, has brought a little of that magic to her program, and especially in such a big game.
That reminds me so much of some of Maryland’s second-half magic. There was the time that Jen Adams had a 10-point second half in the NCAA final against Princeton in 2000, winning 16-8. The following year, Maryland shut out Johns Hopking 16-0 on the way to a 24-5 win, with Adams having 12 points.
Being successful in any endeavor is all about making adjustments, which is what often happens during halftime of a game. It’s no wonder that the Timchal coaching tree has so many branches across the lacrosse universe right now.
