Dukes stifle Spartans in physical home bout
Walls and Bain combine for winning goals, tied for team-high with four goals on year
By Caroline Morris, staff writer
Posted on September 11, 2006

The play was so physical in Friday’s field hockey game between JMU and Michigan State that sometimes it felt more like a rugby game.

But the Spartans, who are known for being a physical team, couldn’t rattle the 13th-ranked Dukes as JMU won 2-1 at JMU Field Hockey Complex.

“I’m not surprised,” Madison coach Antoinette Lucas said. “The Big Ten plays tough, physical hockey and that’s what Michigan State did today. We expected that and we didn’t stay terribly composed in the first half against it, but we played better in the second half.”

The Dukes seemed shaken by the Spartans’ play in the first half and frustrated with the referees’ calls. Senior Baillie Versfeld and freshman Meghan Bain were given green cards less than a minute apart from each other in the first half and the referee stopped the clock several times to talk to players on both teams.

“It got a little out of hand, I thought,” Bain said. “There’s a tendency if people are physical, you’re physical back. But most things I thought were accidental. If you come behind, it’s just because you are trying to get around them and play defense on them. I don’t think most things were intentional.”

Though the Dukes outshot the Spartans 6-2 in the first half, Michigan State was the first to get on the board with a goal in the first five minutes of the game.

JMU sophomore midfielder Ashley Walls evened the score late in the first half when she rebounded the ball of Versfeld’s penalty corner shot.

“I just stuck my stick down because it was a corner,” Walls said. “On corners goalies go out, so I just stuck my stick down and hoped it went in.”

The second half brought a calmer and more collected JMU team. Michigan State fouled the JMU several times in the circle, resulting in five penalty corners for the Dukes. JMU couldn’t get past Michigan State goalie Stephanie Yuhasz — who had eight saves in the game — until Bain scored in the 62nd minute on a breakaway pass from Versfeld. Bain and Walls are tied for the team lead with four goals apiece after Friday.

“They played together in high school and they chose to play again here,” Lucas said of Bain and Walls, who are cousins and played together at Eastern High School in Voorhees, N.J., along with Walls sisters Melissa and Lauren. “They can read each other so well. They both set each other up.”

While Bain was getting things done on one side of the field, freshman goalie Kelsey Cutchins was helping the Dukes on the other side. Cutchins, who guarded the net in the second half as she has in each of the Dukes games so far this season, had four saves against Michigan State.

“Kelsey came in as a junior national goalkeeper,” Lucas said. “We knew she’d be good enough to play, and then Merel [Broekhuizen, the other goalie] came back from the summer ready to go, so we’re going with two halves right now and they’re both playing fantastically.”

The Spartans made one last effort to even up the score by taking it up the side with less than two minutes remaining, but the Dukes were able to keep them at bay by pushing the ball back to the center of the field to end the game.

“I like the physical [style] just because it’s more competitive,” Bain said.

This week the Dukes face No. 19 Richmond and No. 1 Maryland.

“We have a goal to win against the teams in the South and in Virginia, and so Richmond’s going to be a very important game for us, an important win,” Lucas said. “Maryland is No. 1 in the country right now and eventually it’s going to be our time to take that spot, and we’re just looking forward to a great game.”

MSU    1  0 — 1
JMU    1  1 — 2

Goals: (MSU) Anne van Rijswijk; (JMU) Ashley Walls, Meghan Bain.

Assists: (MSU) Amy Schneider, Charlo van der Laag; (JMU) Baillie Versfeld

Records: Michigan State (1-4), James Madison (4-1).