Nov. 1, 2011

Week 9 Notes

Last Week
Johns Hopkins earned a pair of big wins last week to secure the number three seed and a first-round bye in the Centennial Conference Tournament. Hopkins traveled to Westminster and beat host McDaniel, 4-1, before returning home and topping Gettysburg, 5-2, on a wintery day at Homewood Field.

The Blue Jays led the Green Terror, 1-0, at the half on a goal from junior Maggie Phillips but the home team pulled even just over five minutes into the second stanza. Hopkins responded with three straight goals, including a pair in a span of less than five minutes, to take control of the game. Senior Emily Ortega scored a pair of goals and classmate Kim Stein made nine saves to lead JHU to the win.

Three days later, Hopkins hosted Gettysburg in a must win for both teams. The Blue Jays jumped out to a 4-0 lead before the game was 29 minutes old. But the Bullets didn’t go away as they came out firing to start the second half. Gettysburg got a pair of goals in the first nine minutes of the second half to make it a 4-2 game with a lot of time left. Hopkins got one goal back and re-took control at 50:08 when Phillips scored her second of the day to put the Blue Jays on top 5-2. Stein finished with eight saves, while senior Ali Bahneman had two defensive saves and classmate Zoe Koven had one.

Golden Win
Hopkins’ win on Saturday against Gettysburg not only clinched the number three seed in the Centennial Conference Tournament, but it was also the 50th win for the senior class. The seniors are just the eighth class in program history to amass atleast 50 wins in their career. And they are not done yet as the Blue Jays return to the field on Saturday in search of win #51.

Tournament Time
Johns Hopkins is making its 11th appearance in the Centennial Conference Tournament and earned a first-round bye for the sixth straight year. The Blue Jays have made more CC Tournament appearances than any other school in the conference (Ursinus and Gettysburg are tied for second with 9 appearances). Hopkins is 11-8 all-time in the Centennial Tournament, including 8-2 in semifinal games, and won Centennial Conference Championships in 2000 and 2003.

Hopkins will face second-seeded and 12th-ranked Ursinus in the semifinals on Saturday at top-seeded Franklin & Marshall. The Blue Jays and the Bears have met six times in the conference tournament but this will be the first meeting in the semifinals since 2003. Ursinus leads the all-time series 5-1 with Hopkins’ lone win coming back in the 2003 semifinals. Haverford and Washington College will square off in the first round on Wednesday with the winner facing F&M on Saturday. The Blue Jays are 0-1 against the Fords and 1-0 against the Shoremen. And against the top-seeded Dips, the Jays are 2-0, though the two last met in the 2005 first round.

The Century Mark
Head coach Megan Fraser earned her 100th career Centennial Conference win on October 19 with Hopkins’ 5-1 defeat of Dickinson. She is the first field hockey coach to reach the century mark in the 19-year history of the Centennial Conference. She is now 103-41 (.715) in Centennial Conference games in her career. Fraser ranks second all-time in conference history in tournament wins (11) and is first among active coaches.

Moving on Up
Senior Carly Bianco is moving up the Hopkins record book in career points and goals. She is now 16th in school history in points (54), tied for 13th in goals (21) and tied for 18th in assists (12). While senior Annie Shepard now ranks 24th in career goals (16). Senior goalie Kim Stein is moving up the career lists as well, as she ranks fourth in career saves (313) and 10th in minutes played (2663:25). Senior Zoe Koven meanwhile, is tied for third in defensive saves (9) while classmate Ali Bahneman is tied for seventh (6).

Statistically Speaking
Junior Maggie Phillips ranks in the top 10 in the Centennial Conference in points (6th/28) and goals (6th/14). Senior Ali Bahneman is tied for second in assists (7) and tied for third in defensive saves (5), along with classmate Zoe Koven. Meanwhile, senior goalie Kim Stein is third in saves (138), sixth in goals against average (2.24) and tops in save percentage (.817).

At the Helm
Head coach Megan Fraser is in her 15th season at Homewood. The longest-tenured and winningest coach in both Johns Hopkins and Centennial Conference history, she boasts an all-time record of 184-110 (.626). She has guided the Blue Jays to double-digit wins in 14 of her 15 seasons, five NCAA Tournament appearances and three Centennial Conference titles.