Here is the fifth installment of a series taking a look at each of the eight Division III programs in the state according to their order of finish from last season. This is Goucher's turn.
Overview: For the first time since their inaugural campaign in the Landmark Conference back in 2008, the Gophers did not finish first in the league standings. A 4-2 record put the team in third, but it did advance to conference tournament title game before losing to Susquehanna, 9-6. That might have put a little shine on the season, but for a program that had captured Landmark tournament crowns in 2010 and 2012 and the automatic berth in the NCAA tournament, Goucher's primary concern is getting the gold, not settling for silver.
Reason for optimism: While the offense lost three of six starters, the defense returned five of its top six players.
All three close defensemen – juniors Andrew Foster (30 ground balls and 16 caused turnovers), Nathan Cain (18 GB, 11 CT) and Blake Russell (31 GB, 7 CT) – are back. So are senior goalkeeper Karl Wiszumerski (7.86 goals-against average, .535 save percentage), junior long-stick midfielder Ethan Haddaway (7 GB, 4 CT) and senior short-stick defensive midfielder Zach Wrisk (23 GB, 5 CT).
The only hole to fill is deciding whether juniors Stefan Schultz, a converted goalie, or Mark McDonald will complement Wrisk as the other short-stick defensive midfielder.
Coach Brian Kelly didn't dismiss the idea that the defense is the strength of the team, saying, "On paper, it definitely looks that way."
Reason for pessimism: An offense that ranked just 115th in Division III in scoring at 9.5 goals per game last spring got some additional bad news in the offseason.
After graduating midfielder Pierce Ingram (21 goals and seven assists) and attackman Max Roach (16, 11), the Gophers learned that attackman Dylan Zook's eligibility had run out. Therefore, Zook's 23 goals and 15 assists were also gone.
Senior attackman Sam Morgan (27, 13), junior midfielder Owen Demmerly (20, 10) and senior midfielder Sam Woodruff (8, 14) are back. But three freshmen – Leo Sementilli, Pierce Bailey and Jaryd Hartzell – are vying with junior Conner Annunziato to start on attack.
Senior Gavin Wilson (5, 2), junior Michael Morgan (5-0) and sophomore Jake Ziegler are competing for the third spot on the first midfield. Kelly sounded optimistic that the offense won't fall back too much.
"When we lose Dylan and Max Roach, we lose two-thirds of our starting attack," Kelly said. "While that on paper looks to be a hit, we've got guys on our roster that we're going to be able to plug in there. We've got a couple freshmen that are playing and are athletic and bring a little more athleticism potentially to the table."
Keep an eye on: The offense might be able to maintain its productivity with a little help from the faceoff unit.
As a sophomore, Tristan Morris won 49.8 percent (130-of-261) of his faceoffs and scooped up 69 ground balls. But in his first four games, Morris won just 26.1 percent (18-of-69) of his draws, and Goucher lost to Washington College, Gettysburg, Randolph-Macon and McDaniel.
Kelly acknowledged Morris and his wing players must hone their games to give the offense a chance to relieve some of the pressure on the defense.
"Last year, early in the year, we struggled," Kelly said. "We got crushed against Washington College and we got crushed against Gettysburg and we got crushed against Randolph-Macon. We weren't winning draws and therefore were not having extra possessions, and that's a big part of the game. So that's definitely an area that we're looking at and saying, 'OK, how can we be better?' We're trying to address that issue."
What he said: The Gophers are the only team in the Landmark to qualify for all seven conference tournaments. But they have gone two years without a league tournament crown, which is the program's longest drought since 2008-09. Kelly said players and coaches alike are eager to start a new trend.
"We played for a championship last year, and in evaluating that game, we just could not execute," he said of the setback to Susquehanna. "So we've had guys and players over the last six months come into this office and want to watch film and want to get better. So there definitely is a desire among the team to go out and try to earn the right to win a championship."