The No. 8 ranked Ithaca College women’s lacrosse team took care of business at home against No. 23 ranked Shenandoah University Hornets 18–6 on May 12 to advance to the third round of the NCAA tournament.
The game started off with great opportunities for both teams but the Hornets struck first with senior midfielder/attacker Ainsley Buckner’s wrist shot past Bombers’ senior goaltender Lexi Held. It took a few minutes but Bombers’ sophomore attacker Lily Cody evened the score at one with 10:50 to go in the first. It took several more opportunities until senior midfielder Sydney Phillips connected with the cage to put the Bombers out in front 2–1.
Both teams continued answering every goal the opponent scored, with Hornets’ senior attacker Gabriella Raspanti tying the game up, only for Bombers junior midfielder Elizabeth Green to give the South Hill Squad the 3–2 lead. The Bombers earned some momentum, as Bombers’ senior attacker Maizy Veitch ripped three straight goals past Hornets’ sophomore goaltender Madison Perry and pushed the lead to 6–2.
With a man-up advantage, Phillips scored her second goal of the game to widen the Bombers’ lead to 7–2. Less than a minute later, Cody got her second goal as well. Penalties were an issue for the Bombers but the penalty kill was excellent throughout the first half. It took about five minutes of action for another goal to be scored but Veitch scored her fourth of the game to give the Bombers a 9–2 lead.
The Hornets’ scoring drought ended soon after, with sophomore attacker Elizabeth Szell trimming the deficit to six. Bombers’ senior attacker Chloe Nordyke answered quickly with a behind-the-back goal to give the Bombers a seven-goal advantage to conclude the first half.
The Bombers picked up where they left off as soon as the third quarter began, as Cody got her hat trick to add on to her impressive afternoon. Bombers’ sophomore attacker Leigh Naturale wristed one past Perry to extend the lead to nine goals. Thanks to a free possession, Raspanti capitalized to lower the deficit to 12–4. Veitch scored her fifth goal of the game to tally onto her record, as well as the Bombers’ lead. A few minutes later, Nordyke scored her second goal of the afternoon to give the South Hill squad a double-digit lead. This lead continued to grow, as Bombers’ senior midfielder Caroline Wise tallied two more goals onto the Bombers’ scoreboard.
The Hornets scored the first two goals of the fourth quarter, as sophomore attacker Emily Ransom and senior midfielder Emily Lerch cut the lead to 16–6. Veitch scored yet another goal with five minutes to go in the game. Wise recorded a hat trick of her own, scoring her third goal of the game to make it an 18–6 win for the Bombers.
Head coach Karrie Moore complimented the offense and said their IQ is first-rate.
“I think it’s kind of what makes our offense really dangerous is just like, we kind of poke around at the defense and read what they’re doing,” Moore said. “We have a lot of weapons in the offense. We’re able to take advantage. … I think it’s definitely what makes our offense dangerous is the IQ that we play with.”
On top of the team’s offensive performance, Held said the defense has been outstanding this season and that showed today as the Hornets could only score six goals.
“Our defense has been phenomenal this year,” Held said. “I think a lot of the shots that I’m saving are because of my defense. I really think that we’re holding them to low angles and forcing them to shoot far out. Shenandoah had some great shots today and we were just forcing them out, holding their elbow, continuously making the shot worse and easier for me to save.”
As soon as the clock hit triple zeroes, the Bombers made history: This is the first time they have ever recorded 18 wins in a season. With this win, the Bombers also leave their last game on Higgins Stadium this season victorious, finishing undefeated when playing at home. The Bombers will play their next game in the third round of the NCAA tournament at 2:30 p.m. May 18 against the No. 18 Pomona–Pitzer Sagehens in Middlebury, Vermont.
Moore talked about the success the team has made over the past seasons and said she is especially proud of the senior class.
“I definitely think it’s been like building,” Moore said. “I think we’ve been talking a lot this year about coming off last season and not being where we wanted to be and not making the NCAA like we wanted to. The senior class decided that the season was going to be different and they’ve made it their mission to make everyone on their page and I think they’ve done a great job meeting. They really decided that this season was going to be different, and they’ve really done everything they can to make sure that they really pull the team along with them, which has been awesome.”
