How big a deal was LIU’s defeat of Mount St. Mary’s in NIRA D1’s opening weekend?
Probably a very big deal. Long Island went into the game never having won a 15s game in the league, and came away with a shutout to the tune of 18-0.
What made this even more noteworthy is that LIU has been limited by its athletics department to a roster of 23. With injuries that 23 can dwindle pretty quickly and in fact on the day Head Coach Joey Rasmus had 16 players to call upon. By the time the game was over, only 13 Sharks were on the field to preserve the shutout. One of those players who’d to come off was captain Gina Pollis, who had to leave at 60 minutes.
Upstarts and Favorites Win in NIRA DI Opening Weekend
“It was a gutsy performance from the players,” said Rasmus. “Playing without your captain, shorthanded … six freshmen … it was a huge effort.”
The opening passage of play was nervous and chaotic. The Sharks struggled to find their structures. When Sophia Gaddis looked to clear the ball deep into the Mount half, the disorganized kick chase committed an offsides infringement. What could have been a huge momentum swing to the Sharks was negated and gifted the Mountaineers an early attacking opportunity in LIU territory.
And in fact that play had long-term ramifications. Rasmus wanted his team to kick; he felt they could do some damage there.
“But after that kick rather than figure it out we opted not to do it anymore,” said the coach. Physical on defense the Sharks still had some things to work on with the ball.
