Sunday, February 21
Mount Pleasant, Mich.
12 p.m.
Central Michigan University
vs
Marquette
Photo by: Todd Drexler
Chippewa Lacrosse Ready To Attack The MAC
2/19/2021 2:28:00 PM | Lacrosse
CMU opens at home on Sunday vs. Marquette
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – The novelty, if there really ever was any, is long gone. So too are the program-building mile marks.
The Central Michigan lacrosse program is in its sixth season, and the expectations of contending for a championship are firmly entrenched.
"I think we're in a better place than I ever imagined," said Sara Tisdale, who has led the program since its inception in 2016. "I feel like for the first time in our program, top to bottom, this is a true, complete roster capable of playing at this level."
The Chippewas were picked to win the Mid-American Conference in the preseason coaches poll in the league's inaugural season for the sport. CMU payed in the Atlantic Sun from 2016-17 and in the Southern Conference from 2018-20. The Chippewas won the SoCon championship in 2018.
The Chippewas were 2-3 when the 2020 season came to an abrupt end because of COVID. They are scheduled to open the 2021 season on Sunday (noon) at the CMU Lacrosse/Soccer Stadium against Marquette.
Fueling Tisdale's optimism is a solid veteran core of seniors that includes Natalie Karlen and Tyra Prince, who rank second and fifth, respectively, on CMU's career points list. CMU's senior class combines with nine juniors to give Tisdale 14 upperclassmen on her 29-player roster.
Also in that group are defenders Kylee Frazier and Brianna Hart, starting-lineup mainstays since they arrived on campus ahead of the 2017 season.
Among the leaders and those expected to step up in the midfield are sophomore Maggie Diebold, sophomore Audrey Whiteside, twins Kendall and Kelly Hoyt, and veteran Hannah Potter, who is "playing senior-level lacrosse," Tisdale said.
The goalkeeping will be shared by a pair of sophomores, Sierra Savage and Erin Owens.
"I think the strength in goalkeeping is that we have a righty (Savage) and a lefty (Owens) and teams will have to prepare for both all year," Tisdale said. "They're different in the best way possible."
Maturity and veteran leadership are two of the pillars on which the program is founded, and Tisdale said she expects it to pay dividends this season.
"I think the biggest thing is we have a team of players who are doing things because they want to, not because they have to," she said. "Players are doing things because they know that that makes them the best teammate, the best player, the best person. Their commitment off the field to growing this year has been incredible. They know the expectations and they live it."
While the program and its personnel have evolved since the inaugural season in 2016, Tisdale has never wavered in her core philosophy. A big step in the maturation process is simply in taking advantage of every opportunity, something that seems so elementary and yet is a major part of the growth process.
"For us it's the unforced turnovers and cleaning up our end of the game," she said. "I feel like all too often we would have really good opportunities and we would squander them. We've always put ourselves in position to win games and our inexperience got the best of us. Going into our sixth season, I feel like we're mature enough now to not let those controllable pieces be detrimental to the outcome of games."
The Central Michigan lacrosse program is in its sixth season, and the expectations of contending for a championship are firmly entrenched.
"I think we're in a better place than I ever imagined," said Sara Tisdale, who has led the program since its inception in 2016. "I feel like for the first time in our program, top to bottom, this is a true, complete roster capable of playing at this level."
The Chippewas were picked to win the Mid-American Conference in the preseason coaches poll in the league's inaugural season for the sport. CMU payed in the Atlantic Sun from 2016-17 and in the Southern Conference from 2018-20. The Chippewas won the SoCon championship in 2018.
The Chippewas were 2-3 when the 2020 season came to an abrupt end because of COVID. They are scheduled to open the 2021 season on Sunday (noon) at the CMU Lacrosse/Soccer Stadium against Marquette.
Fueling Tisdale's optimism is a solid veteran core of seniors that includes Natalie Karlen and Tyra Prince, who rank second and fifth, respectively, on CMU's career points list. CMU's senior class combines with nine juniors to give Tisdale 14 upperclassmen on her 29-player roster.
Also in that group are defenders Kylee Frazier and Brianna Hart, starting-lineup mainstays since they arrived on campus ahead of the 2017 season.
Among the leaders and those expected to step up in the midfield are sophomore Maggie Diebold, sophomore Audrey Whiteside, twins Kendall and Kelly Hoyt, and veteran Hannah Potter, who is "playing senior-level lacrosse," Tisdale said.
The goalkeeping will be shared by a pair of sophomores, Sierra Savage and Erin Owens.
"I think the strength in goalkeeping is that we have a righty (Savage) and a lefty (Owens) and teams will have to prepare for both all year," Tisdale said. "They're different in the best way possible."
Maturity and veteran leadership are two of the pillars on which the program is founded, and Tisdale said she expects it to pay dividends this season.
"I think the biggest thing is we have a team of players who are doing things because they want to, not because they have to," she said. "Players are doing things because they know that that makes them the best teammate, the best player, the best person. Their commitment off the field to growing this year has been incredible. They know the expectations and they live it."
While the program and its personnel have evolved since the inaugural season in 2016, Tisdale has never wavered in her core philosophy. A big step in the maturation process is simply in taking advantage of every opportunity, something that seems so elementary and yet is a major part of the growth process.
"For us it's the unforced turnovers and cleaning up our end of the game," she said. "I feel like all too often we would have really good opportunities and we would squander them. We've always put ourselves in position to win games and our inexperience got the best of us. Going into our sixth season, I feel like we're mature enough now to not let those controllable pieces be detrimental to the outcome of games."
Players Mentioned
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