The Virginia women's lacrosse team went head-to-head with long-time rival James Madison last night for a fall exhibition match, putting up a good fight, but falling 14-13.
"This was a fall game," Coach Julie Myers said. "If we were playing to dominate, we would have done things differently, especially with regards to subbing. The focus of the fall games is to give everyone a taste of what playing another team is like, and to get some preparation."
Most players were given the opportunity to get some playing time and get a feel for what it will be like come the spring.
"It's great to play other teams and players rather than only ourselves so that we can get to see what the other competition is like," senior midfielder Lauren Aumiller said.
Aumiller, a first-team All-American last season, recently was named to the USA Women's Lacrosse Elite squad, and was a member of the USA Developmental Squad in 2001-02, besides being featured in Sports Illustrated's "Top 10 To Watch" for this upcoming season.
"Lauren's finally a fourth year, and probably the dominant player in the country," Myers said. "She's been on the developmental team for a few years now, but the Elite team has been a great confidence booster and a great experience for her."
Aumiller affirmed that "it's been a great experience practicing with the [Elite] team."
Besides the older, more accomplished players, several first years took to the field, exhibiting some fresh talent and energy.
"We have lots of great young players and as always some really strong older ones, senior defender Lauri Kenis said, looking ahead to the spring. "It's going to be a good season."
Myers said she expects freshman midfielder Kim Connors, along with Aumiller, senior midfielder Tiffany Schummer and sophomore attacker Amy Appelt to shine through this spring.
"Kim Connors is going to be pushing for a starting position," Myers said. "We have her playing a middie, and she's really stepped up, so that's really exciting."
Although last night's game was not an accurate picture of how most matches will look, the fall has provided the Cavaliers with the opportunity to work cohesively as a team and focus on problem areas.
"It's been a really good experience in terms of better coaching, we practice harder and you learn a lot more from the other players," Connors said. "It's been a good transition."
The game against the Dukes found Virginia lacking several players due to illness.
"We were definitely sloppy tonight. We were OK sometimes and not so good other times," Myers said. "I think fall is just a chance to prepare the team for playing at the college level. We are where we should be at this point."
Aumiller also remains confident in the team's skill and hard work. The team's plan is to go out and win every game by taking solid control of the scoring.
"We'll definitely be ready for the spring," Aumiller said. "It's going to be awesome. The major goal is to win the national championship, and I think we have the team to do it"
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