Ask Augustana College midfielder Kaylee Nolan what the key to having a good defense in lacrosse is and the Orland Park resident provides a definitive answer.
“Teamwork,” Nolan said. “If one person slacks, the other teams will find it.
“If someone is a step late, then someone else has to be a step early. We have to work together and there is no one single defensive stat. Communicating is important and you have to know where the other person will be.
“I think we mesh together well because most of us have played together since high school. That definitely helps.”
Nolan’s opinion of what makes a successful defense certainly carries an ample amount of merit considering that she was chosen the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin’s Defensive Player of the Week for the period ending April 20.
This marks the third time this season the 5-foot-5 junior has been lauded by the CCIW. She was named the Defensive Player of the Week for the period ending April 6, while claiming the Offensive Player of the Week in the opening week of March.
In garnering her most recent award, Nolan helped the Vikings to three wins as they outscored their opponents by a count of 73-5. The 2012 Sandburg graduate tallied four ground balls, four caused turnovers and 11 draw controls in a 25-4 victory at CCIW rival Illinois Wesleyan on April 15.
Three days later, Augustana notched a 26-0 CCIW triumph over visiting Carroll as Nolan, a three-year starter, finished with a school-record 22 draw controls while adding two caused turnovers.
Later that same day, Nolan — who is double-majoring in engineering and computer science — had six draw controls and one caused turnover in a 22-1 win over Elmhurst in a CCIW matchup.
“Normally, most players get (the Player of the Week award) once or maybe twice,” Nolan said. “The key to it was the draw controls the team had and that I had against Carroll. I guess that stood out to (the voters).
“Defense is such a hard thing to prove (with statistics),” Nolan added. “It’s such a team thing. There aren’t many stats and it’s a hard thing to prove. But (winning the Player of the Week for offense and defense this season) are both great.”
Through the first 16 games of the season, Nolan — who has started every game — has helped the Vikings to a 15-1 overall record and a mark of 5-0 in the CCIW. She is first in draw controls (129), ground balls (39) and caused turnovers (31). Nolan is third in goals (39), fourth in points (52) and sixth in assists (13). Nolan ranked fifth in the nation and first in the CCIW in draw controls with an average of 8.1 per game.
“What I like best about lacrosse is the physicality and the speed,” Nolan said. “It’s a very fast-paced game.
“If you run your offense right and run your midfield right and run your defense right, you’re in control of what happens. You can take 15 minutes for a goal or get one right off the bat.
More Top Picks Best Blue Light Glasses For Screen Time
“It’s unpredictable. You have to work together and it’s cool to see what we come up with when we’re out there. You can’t predict everything that will happen.”
Soaring with Eagles
AIB College of Business guard GeLina Webb (Rich East) was chosen to the 2014-15 All-Midwest Collegiate Conference’s Honorable Mention Team in women’s basketball. This marks the Park Forest resident’s first postseason recognition by the MCC.
Webb, a 5-7 sophomore, paced the Eagles in scoring (12.3 points per game), 3-pointers (46), steals (60) and assists (2.7 per game) this season.
Walsh is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.