The USC women’s lacrosse team faced a long summer in 2018 wondering what could have been. Three one-goal losses to teams that made the NCAA tournament, including an overtime loss to eventual NCAA runner-up Boston College, kept All-American Gussie Johns and her teammates out of the national tournament for the first time since 2014.

Coach Lindsey Munday knew the issue (scoring) and made a hire to rectify the shortcoming. Enter two-time NCAA champion and former Duke midfielder Deemer Class as offensive coordinator.

“Last year we needed to score more goals,” Munday said. “At the end of the day we have to score more than the opponent. We have a solid defensive foundation. We needed to change, push the pace in practice and push the ball to play faster.”

The more up-tempo, aggressive style has produced through the first nine games of the season. USC’s marks are up from a year ago in scoring offense (+2.22 goals per game), shooting percentage (+2.4%), shots per game (+3.84) and shots on goal per game (+4.05). The only downside is that it has produced a higher turnover rate (+2.22). The Trojans are 8-1.

Moreover, there are eight Trojans averaging at least a goal per game. Munday credited the players for buying in on the wholesale change on offense, which affected the returners more than the newcomers.

“The things we’ve been focusing on: ball movement, playing faster, really committing to working both hands and being dynamic,” Munday added. “The offense we are running now is different from last year. Everyone started from scratch and had to buy into a new system and a new scheme.”

Through nine games, the changes have worked. USC has scored 11 or more goals in all its victories, while dropping a 12-9 contest at No. 1 Boston College on March 1, a game in which a second-half comeback stalled.

In the 11-5 win at No. 20 Colorado on Saturday, the Women of Troy used shot efficiency to maintain their advantage, connecting on five of eight attempts in the second half. Senior Emily Concialdi returned to action after a two-game layoff and provided a four-point boost with the game’s opening goal and dishing three assists.

“She’s a phenomenal leader and person,” Munday said. “She’s one of those kids you’re happy to have on the team. She’s happy and makes others enjoy the game and enjoy practice. On the field, she’s come into her own and she’s done a really good job of buying in. She’s gotten so good from the fall to now.”

Sophomore goalie Riley Hertford was superb with 10 saves, holding the Buffaloes to a single goal in the second half. While this is her first full season on the field, last year she was able to work behind Johns to improve her game.

“She was here last year under a great goalie in Gussie and worked and didn’t let last year get wasted,” Munday said. “She competed and she bought in. When her time came, she was ready. It wasn’t time to start from zero. She had a whole year last year training, working and competing.”

Barely 27 hours later, the Trojans were 1,000 miles away in Eugene to finish off the grueling road trip. Another focused defensive effort buoyed by an 8-1 halftime lead clinched a road sweep at Oregon, 14-5. Last year, it was an April sweep of the opposite kind.

“We’re happy with the weekend,” Munday said. “Honestly, I’m proud of the team. It’s a tough trip…This is a new year for us, new group. We’re not looking at last year. We’re focused on this year.”

Binding the revamped offense and the signature defense has been junior midfielder Kerrigan Miller. An IWCLA third-team All-American last year, Miller is everywhere on the field. She leads the team in ground balls (26) and caused turnovers (15), while ranking second on the squad with 27 draw controls. She has also tossed in 11 goals, too. For her coach, it’s the things that don’t appear in the stat line that are most notable.

“I’ve always been super impressed with the intangibles with her heart and hustle plays,” Munday said of Miller. “Fighting for ground balls and simple slides, she can play one-on-one defense, things that aren’t on the stat lines. She’s a between-the-30s type of player. It’s about the true two-way midfield moments, heart plays.”

USC enters a unique part of its schedule, as it will play Cal and Stanford twice each over an eight-day stretch. Now ranked 14th in the latest Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20, the Trojans remain focused on themselves and not thinking too far ahead.

“We’re not thinking about [the Pac-12 title] right now,” Munday said. “We’ve preached from day one, it’s about being in the moment, focusing on what you can do for the team and in the moment. We’re looking at 1-0 against Cal for Saturday, then we’ll change gears for the Monday game [against Stanford].”

THE WEEK THAT WAS

And Then There Were Four

The ranks of the unbeaten have dropped to four, and they’re all ranked in the top 10 in this week’s poll: No. 1 Boston College (9-0), Maryland (8-0), No. 7 Notre Dame (8-0) and No. 10 Michigan (10-0).

The Irish Are For Real

Any questions about Notre Dame’s undefeated start were answered Saturday at Virginia. Andie Aldave’s 20th goal of the season with 90 seconds left polished off a 5-1 run to complete the 10-9 comeback win for Notre Dame against the Cavaliers. It’s the second straight year that an Aldave goal capped a massive comeback against UVA. Aldave turned the trick in last year’s ACC quarterfinals with 2:42 to go.

Taylor Perfect Against Ohio State

It was only 30 minutes, but eight saves and a clean sheet by Megan Taylor backstopped Maryland’s 12-0 halftime lead en route to a 16-1 demolition of Ohio State. Taylor leads the nation in save percentage (58.3) and is fifth in goals against average (8.14). She has yet to yield more goals than saves this season and in her past two outings she’s saved 21 of 30 shots on frame (70 percent).

Virginia Tech Upends Denver in OT

It seems early to look at the postseason, but if there was a team that needed a big win to gain any momentum, it was Virginia Tech. The Hokies (6-4, 0-1 ACC) dropped all their notable games up until Sunday, when they broke through for a 15-14 overtime win over then-No. 13 Denver (7-2). With at least eight games remaining, Virginia Tech will face a minimum of five NCAA tournament teams and will have to beat at least one of them to sniff a return trip to the postseason.

Parrella Nabs Weekly Honors

Hofstra attacker Alyssa Parrella has been a lethal scorer all season (4.38 goals per game). Her eight-point effort against High Point cemented the Pride’s 13-10 win over High Point, which came just three days after High Point upset Johns Hopkins. Parrella scored six times on seven shots and is fourth nationally in goals per game. She earned Brine/US Lacrosse Player of the Week honors.

Duquesne’s Hart Lights Up Central Michigan

Duquesne’s Maddie Hart had a standout performance against Central Michigan this weekend in the Dukes’ 24-18 win. Hart scored a career-best seven goals on 11 shots and picked up a career high-tying 13 draw controls. Hart already has 17 goals this season, six shy of the 26 she posted in 16 games last season. First-year coach Corinne Desrosiers has Duquesne (5-1) leading the nation in goals per game (19.17).