Field Hockey Opens 2012 Campaign in Ohio This Weekend

Friday, August 24

Kent, Ohio

2:30 PM

James Madison University

Vermont

8/24/2012 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

HARRISONBURG, Va., Aug. 23, 2012 – Coming off an appearance in the Colonial Athletic Association semifinals a year ago, the James Madison field hockey team opens up its 2012 season with a pair of games on the campus of Kent State over the weekend. On Friday, JMU plays a neutral site match against Vermont at 2:30 p.m. before closing out the road trip on Sunday at 12 p.m. against Kent State.

The Dukes were picked to finish fourth in the eight-team CAA this year after going 9-10 overall and 4-4 in league play last season. They return a young, but experienced team that features eight starters and 14 letterwinners coming back. Of the 26 players on the roster 19 are listed as either a freshman or a sophomore, including 11 true freshman and one redshirt freshman.

Madison returns 69-percent of its goals scored from last season and 83-percent of its assists.

Leading the way amongst returning players is 2012 Preseason All-CAA picks in senior midfielder Jenna Taylor (Midlothian, Va./James River) and redshirt freshman forward Taylor West (Princess Anne, Md./Pocomoke). Taylor was third on team in goals with three and points with 10 as a junior and was named First Team All-CAA for her efforts. She added four assists to finish with the second-most on the team. West appeared in just three games in 2011, but was still named to the CAA All-Rookie team after finishing with a team-best six goals and 13 points. In her only conference action of the season, West finished with a hat trick against Drexel.

Other notable returners for JMU include senior midfielder Auburn Weisensale (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield) who is the team's active leader in goals scored with 10 as well as redshirt junior back Sam Smiertka (Townsend, Del./St. Thomas More) who missed the entire 2011 season with an injury. Redshirt junior forwards Rachel Wein (Perryville, Md./Perryville) and Courtney Versfeld (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe/Dominican Convent) combined to score five goals a year ago.

One area the Dukes need to find a replacement is in goal where Margo Savage (Virginia Beach, Va./Princess Anne) handled a majority of the work of the previous two seasons. Junior Stephanie Tarafas (Suffolk, Va./Nansemond River) is the only one of Madison's three goalies to have seen any NCAA action. She has appeared in 10 games, starting four, but played just 445 minutes, 50 second in goal. Sophomore Hannah George (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) and freshman Lena Wimmert (Bergisch Gladbach, Germany/Lise-Meitner Gymnasium) are the two other candidates in net.

Last season was the only the second time in Head Coach Antoinette Lucas' eig