Familiar territory within reach for Goucher
Goucher is on the cusp of cementing its third consecutive year as the top seed with home-field advantage in the Landmark Conference tournament. It’s all part of a master plan laid out by the players and coach Kyle Hannan.
“I think the big thing is, that’s a goal that we’ve set,” Hannan said Tuesday. “At the beginning of the year, we said that we wanted to win 10 games, and Saturday [vs. Drew] would be our 10th win. We want to be the No. 1 seed in the Landmark playoffs, and we can accomplish that goal on Saturday. And then we want to win the Landmark championship. That’s a little bit further down the road if we’re able to win on Saturday.”
The Gophers, who are 9-5 overall, have the same 3-1 mark in the Landmark as Catholic, but Goucher own the tiebreaker after edging the Cardinals, 11-9, on April 17. The Gophers could have clinched top seed and home-field advantage last Saturday, but they were surprised by Scranton in a 9-8 decision in overtime.
The loss was a setback, but Hannan said he wasn’t concerned that it could carry over into this Saturday.
“You never want to lose games, especially when you work as hard as our guys do and prepare the way that they do,” he said. But once the loss happens and the sting wears off and you’re able to think through it logically, it was a loss, but I think – in the long run – it could end up being a loss that can push us forward. Yesterday’s practice was much more focused and intense than it’s been in three weeks because we had won for three straight weeks. Sometimes athletes can know where they are and get a little complacent, and that could’ve been happening with our group. To see the way they came out and responded yesterday with the energy that they had and the focus, in a way, it could’ve been a blessing in terms of getting the guys back on top and understanding what they need to do to be able to win games in the Landmark.”
The Gophers won’t get an easy opponent in the Rangers (8-5, 2-2), who are vying with Susquehanna (9-5, 2-2) and Scranton (6-7, 2-2) for two berths in the conference tournament.
“We’re 19-3 against Landmark opponents since the Landmark was formed [for the 2008 season],” Hannan said. “The only two teams that have beaten us are Scranton – in overtime twice – and Drew. So Drew does have a win against us, and they’re capable of beating Goucher. They’ve proven that, and they have the talent this year to do it. So we just have to make sure that we’re ready to play.”
