Oct. 1, 2002
Fans of Lafayette field hockey got only a glimpse of junior forward Meredith Hahn's potential during her first two years as a Leopard. She scored a little, assisted a little, but mainly blended into Lafayette's offense as a piece in a puzzle.
Admittedly, Hahn was passive with the ball, deferring to teammates, intimidated by playing alongside the explosive scoring Megan Monahan, and afraid to stand out and take over a game.
"The past couple of years I was a little timid because Megan is such a great player," Hahn said.
Even Lafayette head coach Ann Gold noticed that Hahn was out of sync and openly talked about it with her and Monahan.
After addressing the issue, it was only a matter of time before the combination clicked. It did in the 2002 spring season, and the scoreboard at the Leopards' Rappolt Field has been a reflection of that.
"Last spring was such an important time for not only Meredith, but for the team in general," Gold said. "We really learned how to play together as a team. It gave us more time to get used to playing on the turf, and individually Meredith made tremendous improvement and became an impact player."
Hahn shed the wide-eyed underclassman-like thinking and learned to trust her abilities.
"I went into the spring wanting to learn how to work better with Megan. I am a lot more comfortable now and both of our games are benefiting," Hahn said.
Hahn's work is paying dividends thus far, and the speedy junior gives the Leopards a second offensive option inside the circle, and along with Monahan, an electrifying two-headed scoring attack that is keeping defenses on their heels.
Hahn's coming out party came in an early season game at Cornell. With the Leopards looking for scoring from someone other than Monahan, Hahn stepped up. The two forwards were sharper than ever, each finishing with a pair of goals and assists, and successfully rescued Lafayette from the brink of defeat three times before Hahn stuffed a Monahan feed for the overtime victory.
With Hahn stepping up, the 2002 Leopards are scoring at an alarming rate, and currently rank in the top 10 in national scoring offense. Their 33 goals in 10 games have them on pace for an unheard of 63 goals, bettering last season's output of 42. The added cohesiveness between Hahn and Monahan is contagious, and as a team, Lafayette has recorded 27 assists, already equaling last season's tally.
"We knew coming into this season that defenses would not be able to just key on one or two of our players," Gold said. "There are a lot of opportunities for Meredith to score from her position, and she is taking advantage of those opportunities."
Individually, Hahn is at her best in the open field where her lethal combination of speed and superior stick work leave defenses flat-footed and opposing coaches guessing.
At no time was that more evident than in the Leopards' 3-0 win at St. Joseph's earlier this season. With Lafayette on the break, a streaking Hahn took an outlet pass up the right sideline and out-sprinted everyone to the goal. One-on-one with the goaltender, Hahn, a picture of confidence, powered the ball into the back of the net.
"Meredith executed a perfect one-on-one opportunity against St. Joe's," Gold said. "She was composed, poised, and because of that, she scored."
Hahn's play has been a major reason for the Leopards' 8-2 start, and although she will not admit it, the junior has at times been as dominant a player that there is on the field, already earning Patriot League and ECAC Player of the Week awards.
"I think I have been at the right spot on the field at the right time so far," an unassuming Hahn said.
Coming into the week, Hahn's eight goals and six assists rank her 10th in the country in scoring, and second in the Patriot League, behind only Monahan.
According to Hahn, the Leopards are not thinking about slowing down, and this team admittedly has its sights on a Patriot League Championship.
"Our offense is just beginning to click," Hahn said. "Every time we play we get even more comfortable with one another, and we are going to continue to be aggressive on the offensive end."
