Senior Deanna Radcliffe led Temple’s lacrosse team to its third straight victory in conference play with a 15-7 win over George Washington (6-6, A-10 1-4 ) last Sunday.
Radcliffe scored six goals on six shots and dished out three assists to put the Owls (7-5, A-10 3-0) into a first place tie with St. Bonaventure.
Radcliffe, who continued her scoring spree as the point leader on the Owls squad, scored her eighth goal last week and earned herself her second straight Atlantic 10 Player of the Week award.
She had two goals against No. 5 Princeton early last week and added to her tally against the Colonials.
Asked how she felt about her personal performance, Radcliffe did not have much to say.
She was focused more on her team’s performance.
“I’m glad that we won today,” Radcliffe said.
“But my teammates and I are not very satisfied with the way we performed today against George Washington.
“I just tried to pick my corners when shooting today, I guess my shots worked out well.”
Junior midfielder Tiffany Pulaski also added four goals and an assist, and freshman Patty Glavin scored two goals in the victory.
A big help for the Owls was sophomore Megan McClouth, who replaced an injured Sheena Oommen in goal.
McClouth surrendered only five goals on 14 shots.
“Megan did a tremendous job in goal today, we really needed her to step up against this A-10 team because these wins become more and more crucial as the season comes to an end,” head coach Kim Ciarrocca said.
“But overall, she did a great job today.”
Temple, which was a heavy favorite to win its third conference game against less talented G.W., came out flat and played sloppy, Ciarrocca said.
“We haven’t been flat in awhile, but I think today we came out a little sloppy,” Ciarrocca said.
“Coming out every day and playing pumped up isn’t the easiest, but we got through the game and came out on top.”
The team played extremely well in the second half of the game, she said, which was extremely important.
“You always have to be ready as a player to face the opposition even when you’re not feeling your best. The girls did a good job of doing that today,” Ciarrocca added.
The Owls will embark on a three-game road trip to Duquesne, St. Bonaventure, and Saint Joseph’s – all A-10 opponents.
“We have a big week coming up,” Ciarrocca said.
“We have to practice hard, regroup, and get better and smarter because this road trip isn’t going to be easy.”
If the Owls can keep their A-10 undefeated streak going, they will help their chances of getting a top seed in the conference tournament and enhance their chance to make the NCAA Tournament for a second year in a row.
David Gunning can be reached at psgunn11@hotmail.com.
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