Thursday's entry is the second installment of a week-long series taking a look at each of the eight Division III programs in this state according to their order of finish from last season. The Sun's lacrosse preview is slated to be published Feb. 17. This is McDaniel's turn.
Overview: After qualifying for the Centennial Conference tournament in 2009 and 2010, the Green Terror took a step back, finishing sixth in the league standings and missing the four-team tournament. Nine seniors graduated, but there's a sense of optimism around the program that the upcoming season will end differently. The challenge for the team is finding a way to navigate a conference that includes No. 3 Dickinson and No. 16 Gettysburg.
Reason for optimism: The defense bid farewell to long-stick midfielder Matt Mummert, who led the team in caused turnovers (17) and ranked second in groundballs (51). But the unit appears stocked by the likes of fifth-year senior Nelson Hannahs (who can play either close defense or long-stick midfielder), seniors Nick Sicuranza and Preston Ketchum, and junior Alex McCoy. "I would say at this point, that's our strength right now," coach Matt Hatton said of a defense that surrendered just 7.9 goals per game last year.
Reason for pessimism: An offense that averaged just 7.4 goals last season has to prove that was an aberration. One method for improving that number is being more selective with the shots. The unit converted just 21.7 percent of its shots (104-of-479), and Hatton said McDaniel must be more efficient against opponents. "I think last year, we were limited offensively because a lot of it had to do with our poor shooting percentage," he said. "If you look back and see what we shot, you'd kind of gasp and hold your breath for a second and certainly we do that as well. That's something we've worked hard on in the offseason and the fall, and it's something we've been working on now. I think if we shoot the ball better and are a little bit more judicious of when we shoot and what shots we take, I think you'll see the assist column improve as well."
Keep an eye on: Fifty-nine of the offense's 104 goals were assisted, but no player finished with more than nine assists. Senior attackman D.J. Rickels, who led the team in goals (31), also paced McDaniel in helpers, but Hatton is hoping that senior attackman J.S. Duke and freshman Patrick Bivons can contribute in that department. "I think with the way things are moving offensively this year, I'd be surprised if he [Rickels] didn't have more assists than in years past," Hatton said. "But I also think that one of the main reasons J.S. and Patrick have an opportunity to really do some good things for us is because that's pretty much the best part of their games, getting the ball around."
What he said: Last year's 6-8 overall record and 3-5 mark in the conference was a sobering reminder of the peaks and valleys of athletics. Hatton said the team is committed to turning things around. "I think we definitely use it for motivation," he said. "It's the first gauge that we can use to kind of see how we progressed during the season. Having [advanced to the league tournament] two years in a row and then not doing it this past year, if that's not motivation, then I don't know how you're ever going to get motivated. We're definitely motivated to get back there and hopefully go further."