Each week, we will look back at the games that were to see which players had the largest individual performances. I say largest because the contributions that we can measure (from play by play) tend to be things that are easy to count. This includes, goals, shots, assists, turnovers, penalties, etc. We can’t measure a defender who shuts down an opposing player so completely that she doesn’t even touch the ball. Still, it is interesting to be able to identify the players that really filled it up each weekend and give them a shout out here.
For a bit of background, in order to rank single game performances, we needed a way to condense box score stats to a single number for each player. In order to do this, we relied on our expected goal values methodology, which assigns a goal value to each type of play depending on how often it leads to a goal in the next 60 seconds. By adding up all the expected goals added for each player, we can get to that single number and these rankings.
We have also tagged each performance with the opponent’s ELO rating. The higher the number, the stronger the opponent. This should help to give some context for each performance. Did the player feast on the dregs of D1 or did they put up these numbers against a quality opponent?
Click on any player’s name or the PRO logo () and you’ll head straight to the detailed breakdown on their LacrosseReference PRO page. As opposed to last year, all players appearing in the weekly rundown are unlocked and the information on their page is available to all readers.
Top Single Game Scores of the week
#1 – Hailey Rhatigan (Mercer) – 10.98 goals added
Apr 6 vs Gardner-Webb Opp ELO: 1260
The Mercer offense has been on an incredible upward trajectory the past 3 seasons.
They finished 2020 as the 74th best opponent-adjusted offense. Last year, they finished 34th. So far this year, they are 16th. And Hailey Rhatigan has been the straw that stirs the drink for the Bears. She’s taken 32% of the team’s shots and has 20% of the team’s assists (both team highs).
Another week of Abby Hormes beating up on a not-so-great defense. The difference in this one, as compared to her stat line against Wofford, is the ground balls.
Her previous career high was 6 GBs; in this game, she had 9. Do you know how many games I have in my database, either men’s or women’s, where the player had at least 9 goals and at least 9 GBs? One, the answer is one. This one. That’s the only one. Ever.
Should Columbia start a men’s lacrosse program? People are talking.
But on this day, it was the Columbia women so just could not stop Katie Elders from doing whatever she wanted. This was a get-right game for Dartmouth, who broke a five-game losing streak, in part thanks to a 64% shooting day (seven goals on 11 shots) from Elders. The 9.16 raw EGA stat line is a career high for her, and it nearly doubled her previous high water mark.
The issue for Dartmouth, which has been an issue for Elders especially, is ball security. As a team, they are turning it over on 36% of their offensive possessions. Not going to be enough in the stacked Ivy League.
Games like this one from Girardi are a big part of why the conference is still so lopsided toward the Wildcats. Her 19 draw controls went a long way toward Northwestern running up a 14-possession advantage in this one. When you have the best per-possession efficiencies AND you dominate possessions, it’s a tough combination to beat.
When you score 22 goals, and 14 of them come from just 2 players, you end up with 2 slots on the list of top EGA games. Christensen has been the third option for Dartmouth all season, and on a day with Maja Desmond was held scoreless (and shot-less), Christensen was happy to step into the Number 2 role.
Like many first-year players, Christensen’s contributions have been somewhat one-dimensional. She’s got 21 goals, but just 2 assists on the season. It didn’t matter in this one, but you always like to see players that can do lots of different things. I’m sure that’s a skill she’ll develop as she gets more experience.
So yes, Hawryschuk scored seven goals. Yes, she put all 10 of her shots on net. Yes, the 7 goals tied a career high.
But I want to talk about the 4 assists. Because that is the thing that has changed the most with her game over the years. In 2022, she is in the 88th percentile for assist rate (assists-per-touch). In 2019, she was a 37 (out of 100) on that count.
Creo is one of my favorite players; not a long of national attention, but her stats are really impressive. I use a Madden-style rating scale to give every player a score across a range of different dimensions. Her game against Lafayette was representative of what’s she’s been doing all season:
Tough game for the Zips here. In part thanks to Noelle Boyd, Akron ended the game with a +12 possession advantage over YSU. You don’t see a lot of games where a team loses by 2 and has a +12 on possessions.
But that is the situation we find ourselves in. Can’t fault Boyd though; 4 goals on 5 shots to go with her 19 draw controls. She earned her spot this week.
Last, but not least, we have another impressive outing from Katie Pascale. She scored or assisted on half of the Great Danes’ goals in this one.
This is a good example of what a player’s role in an offense can do to their shooting percentage. She’s the primary option on offense, which generally means she’s also the last option, which can mean lower percentage shots. And her shooting percentage is down slightly from last year. But after accounting for the higher usage rate, her true shooting percentage has actually gone up.
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) and you’ll head straight to the detailed breakdown on their LacrosseReference PRO page. As opposed to last year, all players appearing in the weekly rundown are unlocked and the information on their page is available to all readers.
