The Mighty McKenzie

JMU junior attack burns up back of net

Amy Paterson / photo editor JMU junior attacker Brooke McKenzie takes aim and fires during Tuesday's practice.

Had Disney’s Mighty Ducks been about women’s lacrosse instead of hockey, Brooke McKenzie would have filled the role of Fulton Reed admirably.

Reed’s slap shot tears holes in the back of nets and is feared by all who cross its path. Likewise, JMU’s junior attacker has a shot that is nearly impossible to stop when on target.

"Brooke just has a rocket," JMU women’s lacrosse coach Kellie Young said. "You don’t want to be in her way."

Halfway through the 2005 season, little has gotten in McKenzie’s way that has stopped her from scoring. The Englewood, Col., native has 12 goals on 23 shots. Among the 23 Colonial Athletic Association players with at least 10 goals this season, McKenzie’s .522 shooting percentage ranks fifth.

"People across the country have tape on her sidearm [shot]," Young said. "But there’s not much you can do when you can’t see the ball."

The difficulty in following McKenzie’s shot isn’t just because it’s fast and accurate. She shoots from a wide range of angles, leaving defenders and goalkeepers searching for the ball as it whistles past them.

"It’s hard to find it because she drops her stick and changes the level of her shot," JMU senior goalkeeper Amy Altig said. "When she does that it’s hard to see the ball."

But while McKenzie’s shots have never lacked velocity, it’s her accuracy that has taken center stage this season.

"Her placement has come so far," Young said. "She barely hits keepers and she’s rarely missing the cage."

It wasn’t too long ago that the only thing McKenzie couldn’t hit was the back of the net. As a freshman in 2003, she scored 16 goals on 43 shots. Last season she totaled 13 goals on 45 shots, netting her a .289 shooting percentage, the second lowest on the team.

McKenzie’s struggles continued into the early part of the 2005 season. She scored one goal in JMU’s first three game as the Dukes’ offense stumbled out of the gate.

"Early on in the season we were just taking shots to take them," Young said. "Most of [McKenzie’s] success has come as of late, as with the rest of the team."

In the four games since, McKenzie has led a scoring barrage, tallying 11 of JMU’s 45 goals. She had a hat trick in the Dukes’ 10-5 win over Notre Dame March 13 and followed it with a career-high five-goal performance against Virginia Tech four days later.

"My confidence is up a lot more than last year," McKenzie said. "I’ve done tons of extra sessions of shooting. It’s exciting to be able to put the ball in the back of the net."

One thing McKenzie’s extra practice has helped her with is using her shot in different ways.

"I’ve learned that if my shot isn’t from the outside then I can pump-fake and defenders will hesitate," McKenzie said. "Then I can get inside."

And that helps her do even more damage. Young and senior attacker Jessica Brownridge said McKenzie’s ability to create scoring opportunities in the middle makes her a more versatile threat.

"We laugh that she has her big beautiful shoulders and she’s very proud of them," Brownridge said. "She does a great job of getting around defenders and turning the corner."

Once that happens, McKenzie has shooting space.

"I haven’t gotten it clocked recently," McKenzie said of her shot. A couple of years ago I clocked it at around 65 mph. It might be faster now, between 65 and 70."

While McKenzie said she didn’t know how hard that is, Altig does.
"It’s fast," Altig said. "I don’t think anybody in the country can shoot like she can."

And that’s something even Fulton Reed can’t touch.