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The Daily OrangeWLAX | Miller faults herself for poor substitutions
By Laura Parquette
Posted: 2/27/06, 1:34 AM EST Section: Sports
While there wasn't much to complain about in the Syracuse women's lacrosse season-opening 15-9 win over Harvard, Orange head coach Lisa Miller said one problem she saw was her own substituting habits.
After a dominating first half in which the Orange allowed only three shots while taking 23 of its own, Miller looked to incorporate as many players as possible. But with a steady flow of SU players rotating on and off the field, the Crimson climbed back from a 13-4 deficit to be within five with just more than three minutes remaining in the game.
"It was my fault," Miller said of Harvard's late surge. "Defense is all about rhythm and timing and I disrupted the flow."
Miller said with all of her athletes playing well in practice, it was only fair to rotate as many players into the game as she could, but she said her timing in substitutions hurt her team on the field.
Though the defense looked scattered when it saw considerably more action in the second half, it played perfectly on defensive clears, going 8-for-8 in the final 30 minutes. Miller said the Crimson's young talent provided a good test for her defense, and she saw only correctable careless mistakes, many of them her own.
"You want to play kids if you have them," Miller said. "I just didn't sub well."
Wanna be like Pike
Miller praised the second-half play of goalie Ashley Pike, a converted midfielder. After coming on for starter Jen Kasel, who made three saves for the win, Pike only allowed two goals and made three saves.
"She's a great athlete," Miller said of Pike, who said the junior would see time throughout the season in relief for Kasel in situational play. "I'd say she did a pretty good job today. She had good control of the game. Ashley likes to come off the bench. She gets to see what's going on and get a feel for the game. She's more comfortable in that role, I think."
After a dominating first half in which the Orange allowed only three shots while taking 23 of its own, Miller looked to incorporate as many players as possible. But with a steady flow of SU players rotating on and off the field, the Crimson climbed back from a 13-4 deficit to be within five with just more than three minutes remaining in the game.
"It was my fault," Miller said of Harvard's late surge. "Defense is all about rhythm and timing and I disrupted the flow."
Miller said with all of her athletes playing well in practice, it was only fair to rotate as many players into the game as she could, but she said her timing in substitutions hurt her team on the field.
Though the defense looked scattered when it saw considerably more action in the second half, it played perfectly on defensive clears, going 8-for-8 in the final 30 minutes. Miller said the Crimson's young talent provided a good test for her defense, and she saw only correctable careless mistakes, many of them her own.
"You want to play kids if you have them," Miller said. "I just didn't sub well."
Wanna be like Pike
Miller praised the second-half play of goalie Ashley Pike, a converted midfielder. After coming on for starter Jen Kasel, who made three saves for the win, Pike only allowed two goals and made three saves.
"She's a great athlete," Miller said of Pike, who said the junior would see time throughout the season in relief for Kasel in situational play. "I'd say she did a pretty good job today. She had good control of the game. Ashley likes to come off the bench. She gets to see what's going on and get a feel for the game. She's more comfortable in that role, I think."
