Midseason Roundup: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Panthers Sports

Plymouth, NH-As far as the production of Plymouth State University’s spring athletics are concerned, the first half of the season has been a mixed bag. While the women’s lacrosse team has soared so far this season, softball and men’s lacrosse have been in a series of ups and downs, and baseball has had little success.After earning the top ranking in the preseason polls, the women’s lacrosse team has done nothing short of living up to that honor. With six games remaining in their schedule, the Panthers are a perfect 8-0, including three wins in Little East play. All-New Englander Katie Sheridan has been leading the way again this season, collecting a team-best 43 goals and 16 assists en route to three straight LEC Player of the Week honors. Senior goaltender Carmen Villanueva has also received honors for her efforts, earning LEC Player of the Week and ECAC Goalkeeper of the Week awards for her work in the net, including a league-best 5.45 goals against average. Following last night’s contest with Keene State (not completed at press time), the Panthers play Rhode Island College and Bowdoin over the weekend, and have back-to-back matches against Colby-Sawyer before closing out the regular season next Saturday against UMass Dartmouth.The Plymouth State softball squadron has also enjoyed some success this season. Led by All-American hurler Kim Jeffs, the Panthers have an 8-9 record so far this year, including a 2-2 record in LEC play. Jeffs has been dominant as always, notching a 0.99 ERA with 92 strikeouts in 77.2 innings, including a no-hitter during the team’s Florida trip in March. Unfortunately, the Panthers’ offense has been almost as silent as Jeffs’ opponents, scoring three runs or fewer in 12 of the team’s 17 contests so far this season. Senior Michelle Knox has provided power with both of Plymouth’s home runs so far this year, while junior Niki Ramback leads the team with a .306 batting average and twelve runs scored. The Panthers have crucial home contests against Rhode Island and Keene State this weekend, and will close out the season next weekend with doubleheaders against UMass Boston on Saturday and UMass Dartmouth on Sunday.The men’s lacrosse team has been on a rollercoaster ride as far their season goes. With four games remaining on their schedule, the Panthers are 3-4 overall, and have split four games in the LEC. The trend this season seems to be crush or be crushed, as no contest this season has been decided by less than five goals. The Panthers’ offense is led by sophomore Joe Gagnon and junior captain Steve Skinner, both collecting a team-high 13 goals so far this season, while Gagnon has contributed to 20 total points. Goalkeeping duties have been shared mainly by freshman Steve Valeri and sophomore Michael Rodrick, who have combined for a 10.31 GAA and 94 saves, with Valeri earning two of the team’s three wins. Still waiting to play their home opener, the Panthers travel to UMass Boston tomorrow before getting their next opportunity to host in a nonconference matchup with Johnson State. The Panthers then play their final two games at home, taking on Daniel Webster Thursday before closing out their season Saturday against UMass Dartmouth.While other Plymouth State teams have had at least mild success, the baseball squadron has had little to celebrate this season. As they enter the second half of the season, the Panthers are 1-17, including defeats in all five of their LEC showdowns. The Panthers have struggled both at the plate and in the field, batting just .215 (led by sophomore Scott Begalle’s .292) while bearing a 10.74 ERA (led by freshman Tim Conway’s 5.62), and have now been outscored 179-49 through 18 contests. The Panthers only victory this season belongs to reliever Derek Guimond, earned during Plymouth’s extra inning battle with Kalamazoo during the Florida trip in March. Down but not out, Plymouth State still has 18 games remaining on their schedule, including nine against LEC teams. The Panthers pick up action tomorrow against UMass Boston, and will host Keene State and Colby-Sawyer next week.Regardless of dominance or struggle, all Panther teams still have a good amount of their schedule left on the table, leaving hope for the teams that have gotten a slow start on the season. With playoffs just around the corner, it’s still anyone’s game.