“It’s one of those sports where you’re like, ‘Ah, man, practice… I don’t want to go,’ but then when you play in the games it’s worth it.”

Freshman Mariah Jones is referring to the sport she has been playing since junior high school and has lettered in four times during her high school career: lacrosse.
Jones played midfield for the 2009-2010 season, her first at Linfield. The lacrosse season ended April 17 with a 2-8 record, but Jones put up solid statistics, recording 32 goals and 39 points to finish as the season’s second highest scorer.
She said she chooses to keep her mind on the end result of the game instead of focusing on statistics. On a team, it shouldn’t matter who is doing all the scoring or who the leader is, as long as you win, she said laughingly.
Don’t get the wrong impression of the athlete: Winning isn’t all that appeals to her. She’s got her head on straight.
From participating in her sport, she said she has learned how to manage and prioritize her time and work with other people, all of which only complement what she gains from the team atmosphere, which includes spending time with a group of girls that she said she may not have had the opportunity to if she weren’t playing lacrosse.
“You get to meet different people,” Jones said. “Some of the seniors on the team and even some of the juniors don’t even live here. It’s almost as if I would never have met them if we weren’t teammates.”
Obviously, competition is considerably different in college than it is in high school, Jones said. Traveling is involved and opponents are varied instead of from the same conference; however, playing collegiate level lacrosse wasn’t an issue for her once she graduated. She attended games instead of spending time feeling uneasy or intimidated about playing.
“I came into it thinking it was a fun and active way to get involved,” she said. “I’d only played with one other girl on the team, so [I played with] a completely new group of girls.”
As a result of her advancement from high school to college lacrosse, Jones said at the start of the season she transitioned how she played in order to achieve equilibrium with her latest team.
“I feel I’m not a selfish player, but I do take shots,” she said.
In an attempt to describe her playing style, Jones discovered that she doesn’t know what it is — she’s too busy with her head in the game.
Fellow midfielder sophomore Taylor Fisher said that Jones pushed herself to the limit during practice and at game time.
“Mariah was a great addition to our team on and off the field,” she said. “She has speed, a killer shot and amazing stick skills. I loved having her on our team.”
Jones stands at 4 feet, 11 inches. Although, she admits that competing against girls of larger stature makes her feel slightly nervous. Bigger girls don’t worry her too much, she said — her mentality drives her while she plays.
“I’m definitely aggressive,” she said. “I think I’ve gotten three or four yellow cards this season. You have to be aggressive to play. Some lacrosse players are sneaky.”
But the competition isn’t cunning enough to catch Jones off guard. Within the time she has been a lacrosse player, she has sustained few injuries.
“During my last game, I got a pretty nice goose egg on the side of my head because a girl whacked me with a stick,” Jones said. “Other than that, besides getting stick checked on the hand or stick checked in the head or people just mauling over, I haven’t gotten any injuries.”
Her plans to play lacrosse in the future depend on her educational decisions. The elementary education major said she wants to travel abroad. January Term is not long enough to satisfy her, but she said she has yet to decide if she wants to leave during the fall or spring semester.
“If I don’t come back, it’s because of studying abroad,” Jones said. “Obviously, I’m going to put school first before lacrosse.”

Septembre Russell
Copy chief Septembre Russell can be reached at linfieldreviewcopy@gmail.com

Sophomore Erika Helm-Buckman retrieves the ball and attempts to clear it during Linfield’s 17-19 loss to Pomona-Pitzer on April 10. Bridgette Gigear/Freelancer.

The lacrosse team left Tacoma, Wash., after wrapping up a season-ending loss to the University of Puget Sound, 12-22, on April 17.
Linfield ended with a 2-8 record, with the two wins occurring midway through the short season.
The game was evenly matched with neither team scoring a goal until seven minutes in when UPS freshman Julia Schulman found the net. Linfield sophomore Anna Gorciak quickly responded, putting one in the back of the net.
The ’Cats took an early 3-2 lead when sophomore Erika Helm-Buckman netted an unassisted goal.
After the Loggers notched back-to-back scores, the Wildcats regained control, tallying four straight goals to take what would be their last lead of the match.
UPS then strung together nine consecutive goals to end the first half, giving the Loggers a 13-7 advantage.
“As a team, when the other team calls a timeout, we tend to come out half as strong as we started,” Gorciak said. “The Loggers came out twice as strong, and that’s when they scored. Halfway through the second half, when they had an eight-goal lead, I realized it was going to be hard to catch up.”
At the start of the second half, UPS senior Katie Shlesginer scored within the first two minutes. Freshman Mariah Jones got one back for Linfield, although UPS put in two more.
The Loggers took the lead back with two more scores, as Logger sophomore Cathy Soukup recorded a hat trick and secured the lead for UPS.
The Loggers outscored the ’Cats 9-5 in the second half to seal their eighth-straight, and 11th overall, win.
The Wildcats will return next season with a similar team, as only two seniors will graduate: Ashley Johnson and Christina Crane.
“Next season, I expect more intensity and tough play,” Gorciak said. “We’re gonna work hard and play hard. I hope for a winning record and to make lacrosse known as a varsity sport.”
Corrina Crocker
Features reporter Corrina Crocker can be reached at linfieldreviewfeatures@gmail.com

Sophomore Erika Helm Buckman retrieves the ball in attempt to defend against Pomona Pitzer Sagengens in the last home girls lacrosse game loosing in a close game 17-19. Photo by Bridgette Gigear/Freelancer.

The lacrosse team lost a tight game, 17-19, against Pomona-Pitzer on April 10.
With the loss, the Wildcats’ record fell to 2-7 overall.
Pomona-Pitzer built a 12-7 lead, during the first half as sophomore Martha Marich scored six of her eight goals — tied for a game high.
The Sagehens aggressively won the draw, gaining an early lead, and held off the Wildcats during the second half.
Sophomore Anna Gorciak, who tallied eight goals of her own, was impressed by Marich’s play.
“She’s a great player,” Gorciak said. “She is fast and has great stick skills. It was hard to stop her, and her abilities helped them win.”

Sophomore Anna Gorciak an attacker attempts to score in Saturdays game against Pomona Pitzer Sagengens, loosing in a close game 17-19.Photo by Bridgette Gigear/Freelancer.

Freshman Katie Keith said that a slow start was the reason for the first-half deficit.
“Our team got a little slow, which caused [it] to have some fast breaks and allowed [it] to score a couple extra goals,” Keith said.
The Wildcats outscored the Sagehens 10-7 in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to take the win.
Freshman Mariah Jones added four goals and three assists. Sophomore Taylor Fisher scored two goals and tallied one assist.
During the last two games, Linfield, while competitive with the other teams, hasn’t been able to pull out wins.
“We need to stay positive and play our best game for a full 60 minutes,” Gorciak said. “We have to be able to work together as a team and execute what we’ve been working on. We have the ability and skill to win; we just need to put all the components together.”
Keith said she sees a more practical method for team improvement.
“To turn these losses into victories, we need to become more dedicated,” she said. “We need to practice as a team and practice the way we want to play in the games.”
Even though their 2-7 record does not necessarily show it, the Wildcats have shown strong improvement during the season.

Sophomore Erika Helm Buckman retrieves the ball in attempt to defend against Pomona Pitzer Sagengens in the last home girls lacrosse game loosing in a close game 17-19. Photo by Bridgette Gigear/Freelancer.

“We have become a stronger group of friends, which [has] helped on the field and at practices,” Jones said. “There are a couple girls who have never played lacrosse before, and a majority of the team has never played for Linfield, so knowing the game of lacrosse has definitely developed over the course of the season.”
Gorciak said she sees a lot of potential in the team and a bright future that lies ahead.
“We’ve been working hard and have been adjusting to each others’ play,” she said. “Being a young team, we can only improve. We have great potential, and I’ve seen improvement in all of our players.”
Linfield wraps up its season against the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash., on April 17. The ’Cats fell to the Loggers, 11-19, on March 7 in their first game of the season despite five goals from Jones.

Justin Derby
Sports reporterJustin Derby can be reached at linfieldreviewsports@gmail.com

Sophomore attacker Anna Gorciak tries to get around a Pacific University player during the Wildcats’ 14-17 loss April 6. Despite an early lead, the ’Cats allowed nine second-half goals and three Boxer hat tricks overall during the defeat. - Megan Myer/Photo editor

The lacrosse team played a close game against Pacific University on April 6, but lost 14-17.
The women opened with three goals in less than 1 minute. However, Pacific battled back, winning the game with three goals in the final 3 minutes.
“We are evenly matched with them, so every time we play them, it is a close game,” junior attacker Monique Schreiber said.
Freshman attacker Kelly Stevens scored the first goal for Pacific, bringing the Boxers to within two goals.
Linfield retaliated with a hat trick by sophomore attacker Anna Gorciak and goals from freshmen midfielders Isabelle Burke and Mariah Jones, extending the Wildcats’ lead to six.
“After we were up by six points, I expected a win,” sophomore defender Laura Ekstrom said. “I knew it would be tough, and we would have to continue playing at this caliber, but I was confident in our team.”
Pacific made a comeback just before the half, scoring five more goals and making the game 7-6.
Stevens and sophomore Monica Smith scored the seventh and eighth goals, respectively, to give Pacific a two-goal lead at the half.
The second half seemed like an even one until Pacific took the lead on freshman attacker Kaitlyn Harper’s hat-trick goal.
Schreiber said it was an upsetting loss for the ’Cats, as this was the last time they will face the Boxers this season.
“We had some moments where we let them get ahead, and it was hard to catch up,” Gorciak said,
The team, however, is moving on quickly.
“We are now focusing on the last two games of the season and working toward getting two more wins on the board,” Ekstrom said.
The Wildcats will host their last home game at noon on April 10 against Pomona-Pitzer College.
Corrina Crocker
Features reporter Corrina Crocker can be reached at linfieldreviewfeatures@gmail.com