Freshmen show promise in home opener against Providence
Central Michigan’s young field hockey team has taken a little bite of what the collegiate level is like and has shown promise three weeks into the season.
“We’ve relied on the freshman as soon as the season opened,” said CMU head coach Cristy Freese. “Between the starters and (players) coming in off the bench, we’re asking a lot of them. These are first year players playing division one hockey and getting their feet wet real quickly and in that sense they’re doing a nice job.”
The team’s roster is made up of ten freshman, a red-shirt freshman, and ten upperclassmen. Of those freshmen, four have started in each of the team’s four games and have seen a lot of time, and another has started in another game.
“They’re seeing how intense it is and I like their attitude because they’re all working hard, but it’s a tough job to be a freshman and playing as much as they are,” Freese said.
Looking between the pipes, freshmen Carissa Flocken and Jaime Cutter are in the running for the starting goalkeeper position. Flocken has started two games, making 15 saves and allowing nine goals.
“I think (the freshmen) are working well with their team and stepping up doing a great job with us,” said senior captain Kim Sihota. “Obviously there’s room to improve, but that will come with experience.”
Of the team’s five goals this season, three of them were netted by freshmen. Juliana Makrinos came off the bench Saturday against Providence, and sent a pass by Sophomore Erin Dye into the net to put CMU on the board. She scored another late goal to tie the game off a penalty corner and force extra time.
In overtime, freshman forward Bailey McKeon scored her first collegiate goal off a cross by junior Paulina Lee to give the team their first win of the season.
“It was a great goal,” Freese said. “As a forward, (McKeon’s) expectations are to help our offense and score or get an assist every game.”
She leads the team with six shots. Makrinos has three of her own and Simone Lazar has one.
The team will head to Saint Louis to take on UC Davis Saturday and Saint Louis Sunday before heading home for a three-week home stand.
