Learning on the fly
Sophomore Danielle Frank wasn’t given the starting goalkeeper job this season because she had the most experience on the field hockey team.
She had to earn it during the summer.
“I had to change the way I played,” Frank said. “I had to become more aggressive and I worked on my basic skills to stay sharp.”
Frank now has to give way to true freshman Sarah Mancuso after Frank injured her hamstring in Friday’s game against Michigan. Frank had started three games this season, two were shutouts.
Coach Cristy Freese said the Chippewas do not have just one of the best goalkeepers in the conference, but two of the best goalkeepers.
“The only difference between the two is the experience level,” Freese said. “You never want to see anyone get injured, but the best part of having a team is having somebody that can step in.”
The extent of Frank’s injury is not certain, but Freese is optimistic she can return soon.
“Having a more than capable backup allows us to let (Danielle) heal properly,” Freese said.
Mancuso will make her second start of the season Friday when Central opens Mid-American Conference play against the Miami RedHawks at Michigan State.
Mancuso gave up six goals against Northeastern Saturday, but made 11 saves.
Frank and Mancuso are not strangers to competing with each other for playing time, as they played on the same team in the Empire State Games in New York during high school.
The duo pushes and helps each other as they strive to become the best goalkeeping tandem in the conference.
“She has stood behind the goal at practice this week and helped me see things I miss,” Mancuso said. “She lets me know I can’t get everything at once. She went through the same thing when she was a freshman, so she understands what I am going through.”
Frank started 15 games last season and compiled an 8-7 record with two shutouts.
“It is a pretty big deal getting the shutout and I know I do my job if the other team doesn’t score,” Frank said. “It is also big for the team because the defense also had a hand in it. So a shutout is big for the whole team.”
Communication is a key skill for Frank and Mancuso since they are the last line of defense, but Frank can’t communicate to the whole team from inside the crease and she wears a helmet that hampers her vocal ability.
Frank said she relays what she sees to senior sweeper Amy Kauffman, who relays the signals to the rest of the team.
“I am very vocal,” Frank said. “When the ball gets in the circle I have to let my teammates know what is going on.”
Clearing the ball is one of the skills Frank said she still works on daily.
“Once I make the initial save I have to get it out of the circle right away or the other team will have another shot on me,” she said.
Teams will have another shot to score on Frank this season, just not this weekend.
