Chippewa Lacrosse Looks To Snap Losing Skid
4/9/2016 12:00:00 AM | Lacrosse
Zach Libby, CMUChippewas.com
CLINTON, S.C. -- A win under their belts before flying back to the state of Michigan is the goal for the Central Michigan women's lacrosse team, which has been on the losing end of four straight games.
The Chippewas conclude their road trip to South Carolina on Sunday with their final non-conference game of the year when they play Presbyterian at 11 a.m. CMU is 3-6 overall, including 1-5 on the road.
It's the second time this season that the Chippewas will play two games in three days. The first time they did that, back on March 11-13, they defeated Delaware State and Virginia Commonwealth on their home-opening weekend.
CMU fell at Furman, 16-11, in an Atlantic Sun game on Friday.
"From obviously a confidence perspective, getting a win (over Presbyterian) will put the wind back in our sails and to move us forward in the right direction," CMU coach Sara Tisdale said. "It's a game that's winnable if we play up to our level."
Presbyterian (3-10) is coming off a 10-3 Big South victory over Radford. That win snapped a six-game losing streak.
Central Michigan enters Sunday's game averaging 9.33 goals per game. Jocelyne Lemay, who scored five in CMU's loss Friday at Furman, leads the Chippewas with 22 goals and 24 points on the season.
Summer Abdalla and Anna Schoonover are second on the Chippewas with 17 points apiece, while Riley Huda has tallied 15 points.
"We're expecting a great offensive day where we need to execute our sets and get everyone involved," Tisdale said. "I think if all seven (offensive) players on the field are executing their level, you'll see shot production go up."
Draw controls is one component of the game that Tisdale is expecting much improvement on. CMU's opponents have controlled 109 draws, while the Chippewas have controlled 90.
Presbyterian hasn't had trouble finding an offensive presence, averaging 22.5 shots per game and nearly 300 for the season. The Chippewas are averaging 18.7 shots per game and has totaled 168 for the season.
"From a defensive perspective, it's a matter of coming out with a great deal of confidence and executing right away," Tisdale said. "Knowing that it's an opponent that's more erratic than what we're used to and not as scripted."
Tisdale credits Presbyterian though as an experience program with an array of offensive threats, led by Lauren Schaff, who has scored 24 goals and leads the Blue Hose with 28 points.
Central Michigan, however, is concentrated on playing to their speed and controlling the pace of the game - and remaining composed in the face of Presbyterian's unpredictability.
"We're really going to make this our game and set the tone," Tisdale said. "One thing we did notice was that they make choices that aren't always the easiest to pick up on, so for us to control the ball in transition and make sure that we're really focused on not playing into their style."
