 Stevenson falls to Salisbury in the season opener day 14-2 Glen Clark with Coach Cathy Rayleigh. Coach I'm gonna ask you a question that I asked Carly Baffert during the game. How much of the story today is about what you guys didn't do, how much of it is, that's a really really good opponent that you were up against. I'm gonna give that a 50-50 and the reason I'm gonna give that a 50-50 is we are way better than what we showed today. So I'm not sure you know is it I've got to go back and look is it the warm-up why weren't we ready the first couple minutes we looked pretty intense on the flip side of that their backer messed with our heads they were they were faster through the between the 30s they were very organized in their high-pressure backer and even when we were passing to girls that were wide open we were having turnovers so it was just one of those snowball events I think and one mistake turned into two turned into three and then everybody started doubting what the game plan was and not moving off ball like a little things like that I don't want to take anything away from Salisbury I thought they had a great game I think it was a very interestingly called game in the way that the physicality was allowed sometimes and then not allowed other times so so I think getting a flow was difficult for both teams in that respect you know Salisbury looks great you know they they are always gonna reload and and get out there and show a great team we absolutely know what we have to work on this week and Glenn this group is so great at just regrouping and getting back out and working hard so there's no doubt that we will see a very different team in a week from now so let's talk about the turnovers cuz clearly that was a story there's a few players that are sliding into more prominent roles right for you offensively how much of that maybe did you think was on display in the first half of just maybe players that hadn't been out there together quite enough yet that that will grow and that will improve as they're out there more you know it's it's got to it's gonna have to and and we were able to get it there last year I think this core group of sophomores you know some of them saw a ton of minutes some of them saw a very few minutes again you know we practiced the preseason through with keely buns thinking that she would kind of run the show back there when she was injured in our in our scrimmage day again we have to kind of go back and take a look at who's gonna control tempo who are we gonna get the ball to when the pressure is high who's not gonna succumb to that pressure or who's not gonna drop the ball is not gonna get back check because they're not ready for it so so when you lose a player like keely that's that there's a void and I think that we're getting better and better each each day that we're practicing trying to determine who that person is who says I want the ball in my stick and we'll do whatever they have to to get it in their stick and when you have a group of sophomores it's you know we'll see might be somebody different every game which I'd be fine with but it's gonna we're gonna have to really have that mental attitude let's talk a little bit about I'm trying to find a positive I thought I thought well I thought that Mac made the saves that you would expect her to make I thought you know like maybe one that she'll look back and say I could have but I think that if you expect her and made a couple of tough ones early on in the game great ones and she had some great cause turnovers so you know good interceptions good knock downs good stepping up to the ball to not allowing a girl to shoot she knows we know what she has to work on and she was we had to pull her out just to get her timing a little bit which is great you it's great when you have a great backup keepers that you can put in there while she is trying to work something out she went right back in got her attitude great went out there and then made some really big time saves so it's really great to showcase her in that way today you know defensively I think that we we had possessions where we looked like I thought we would look and then because we were playing defense for so long I think we had possessions that look like we didn't know what we were doing you know I just I I appeal to the officials committee and saying that how long do we have to hold fantastic defense before we get a charge call and and I just I just it boggles my mind how often we stopped them solid and because we were a little stronger a little more athletic they start to lose their balance and fall into us and we can't get a great defensive call out of that so so you know I'll keep working that's part of what my real goal is being part of the rules committee is to really get that message that we have to we have to reward great defense there was one early in the game in particular that you got a couple of really puzzled reactions from out here there was there's a couple other ones that were questionable but there was one that we both sort of said yeah we're not gonna get anybody in trouble we're just gonna move no cuz we all have to get better what we're doing but it we have somehow turned into this like the offense can do no wrong and defense and just in the game of lacrosse is getting better and better more athletic players physically stronger players they're getting so good and we are not rewarding them for great defense and and that is just maddening to me so I hope that we can make those changes and kind of flip the switch and and think about things a little bit more equally between offense and defense all right coach I know it gets no easier best of luck next Saturday at Gettysburg we'll see you back here in two weeks all right you very much she's coach Kathy Rayleigh I'm Glenn Clark go mustangsports.com