Finally, the AU Women's Lacrosse team is treading in familiar territory.
It's not that the Eagles haven't seen this part of the season before. And it's not like the early season's been a tragedy. AU sits at 3-4 and, more importantly, 2-0 in the Patriot League, with wins over Lafayette and Lehigh.
It's just that, right now, the Eagles might have a better feel for the I-95 service plazas between Baltimore and Philadelphia than they do for Reeves Field, their home venue.
The Eagles have played host just once, on Sunday's sopping-wet 10-6 loss to Richmond on a field that's spent February and March as a glorified practice facility.
Before Sunday, AU had traveled to Pennsylvania four times - including two trips to Philadelphia - and also graced Towson, Md. - a Baltimore suburb - and Norfolk, Va.
But any homesickness should disappear during the season's second half, which will be spent almost entirely at Reeves. Seven of AU's last nine games are home games.
Though coach Ashley Flanigan says road woes have not hurt her team, the familiar surroundings could help a youthful team that has struggled to begin games with urgency. According to Flanigan, a more comfortable setting, combined with more reps, should help solve that problem.
"I think our youthful squad is one reason why we don't come out strong or fired up and why we're hesitant," she says, adding that if her team played as well to start games as it does to finish them, the Eagles would be exceptional. "Right now, we've experienced our first half, and once we get a few more games under our belt, hopefully everyone will be comfortable and will have adjusted."
On a squad with just two seniors and 11 freshmen, junior midfielder Moriah Linnell has emerged as the team's most notable threat. Linnell can score - she has 16 goals this season - but the Eagles may be strongest when Linnell becomes a distributor, as she did on March 12, assisting on three goals but scoring none in a 14-5 victory over Lehigh.
Ultimately, the Eagles are searching for a multidimensional offense.
"On the attacking end, we need to create a lot more opportunities for each other," Flanigan says. "We just need to find a way to put ball in the net. Occasionally in games, we've had a hard time doing that."
To help the situation, Flanigan has moved sophomore Sarah Milewski from defense to midfield. Milewski has responded, scoring five goals in a 13-6 win at Lafayette on Saturday and adding an assist in Sunday's loss. She was named PL offensive player of the week for that pair of performances, the first time she's receive that honor.
Flanigan is also keen on freshman midfielder Chelsea Kapp, who Flanigan says is good for multiple goals a game. With improving performances from Milewski, Kapp and others, the Eagles hope to right any offensive struggles as they aim at a league title they narrowly missed last season.
Four of AU's nine remaining games are league games, with three coming at home. Those games are paramount, because success in the league leads to a good seed in the PL tournament. Success in the tournament leads to an automatic berth to the NCAA tournament. And in the PL, automatic berths are likely the only berths.
AU advanced to the title game of the 2004 tournament, where it lost an overtime thriller at Colgate, 11-10. The Eagles also lost a close regular-season tilt that year at Colgate, 10-9, which cost them the regular-season crown and the right to host the PL tournament.
This year, Colgate must travel to AU, as must Bucknell, which Flanigan says will also challenge for the league title. Those two teams will visit AU on consecutive weekends in late April.
Unlike the Eagles, Colgate is an experienced squad that lost only one player from last year. And of course, the Raiders are defending champions. Bucknell, meanwhile, was the PL tournament's third seed last year. The Bison are older than the Eagles but are still relatively young, with just three seniors.
AU's youth, which could be viewed as a hindrance, could be a blessing in disguise during this season, which despite being nearly half over, has only begun to develop.
"The greatest thing is improving every game and every practice," Flanigan says. "If we have intense practices, and we're focused every time we have practices or any time we're together, and we improve every game," AU can win the PL.
"I think the girls mentally are ready for it and physically are ready for it," she adds.
