March 5, 2009

By: Justin Feil, special from Lacrosse Magazine Online

Suzy Herlihy sees opponents taking Saint Joseph's more seriously, and knows the Hawks are inching closer to her vision.

Herlihy transferred to St. Joe's after her freshman year at Delaware with the hopes of making a big impact on and off the field. She has, and still has more than half of a season to carry the Hawks higher.

"Right as it's about to end, I'm ready for more," Herlihy said. "I'm savoring this season."

Now a senior, Herlihy is in her third season starting in goal for the Hawks, who have won three straight to go 3-1 with a 16-8 win over Wagner on Saturday. St. Joe's went 7-9 overall, 2-5 in the Atlantic 10 last year, but is the only A-10 school with more than one win after two weeks of play.

"She's definitely helped us in the past three years get to another level," said St. Joe's head coach Denise Roessler, who is in her 10th season at the helm of the Hawks. "I'm definitely appreciative that she chose St. Joe's to transfer to.

"It's been a really good fit for her. She's brought a lot to the program. I'll be sad to see her go. I believe she's the best goalie in the Atlantic 10 conference. Being in the A-10 for as long as I've been, I've seen she's been a dominating goalie. When Suzy's on, she's on."

Herlihy led the A-10 in goals against average (9.46) and was second in save percentage (.502) when she garnered second-team all-conference honors last season, and she ranked second in both categories in 2007. She has begun 2009 with a career-best 8.25 GAA and .515 save percentage while playing all 240 minutes going into Saturday's game against George Mason.

"For me, I always want to get better," the Clarksville, Md. resident said. "I always want the next play to be better than the last one. It's kind of disappointing to know I only have so many games left and so many games to get better."

Herlihy already has seen plenty to be optimistic about in the Hawks, who were picked to finish sixth in the A-10 preseason poll, but have broken out of the gates quicker than expected.

"The energy we play with," Herlihy said, "I haven't seen on any team I've been on before."

She provided the spark for the first-ever matchup between St. Joe's and her former school, Delaware, last Wednesday. Herlihy stopped 11 shots, as the Hawks picked up the program's marquee victory, 10-8.

"It was awesome," Herlihy said. "What a high. They're a great team. It's big for our entire team. It was pretty cool. It's probably our biggest win. They're perennially a top-30 team. We beat them fair and square."

Having Herlihy on the Hawks' side certainly helped. She was playing just days after earning her first ever A-10 Co-Player of the Week award.

"She's been tremendous," Roessler said. "She's an outstanding goalie. Technically, she's very sound. She understands the game probably better than most players I've coached. Her game sense is a plus. She's not just good in cage. She's learned to be a leader this year."

St. Joe's has also boasted the season's first three rookies of the week. Opposing coaches are taking note of a rising Hawks squad, just what Herlihy had hoped would happen when she joined the program three years ago.

"I want to go out on a high note and know as a player, I made a difference and made an impact in the direction our program is headed," Herlihy said. "I feel like I'm part of something bigger."