Women's lacrosse completes win over Delaware

This past Sunday, the No. 13 Princeton women’s lacrosse team (4-2 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) topped the University of Delaware Blue Hens (8-4 overall) in a close battle to mark their third win in a row. By contrast, Delaware, who previously won 5-0 on their home turf, have now lost three straight — all by just one goal.

Just three minutes into the game, senior midfielder Anya Gersoff passed the ball to sophomore midfielder Camille Sullivan for a pass across the front of the cage. Although the Blue Hens were quick to respond with a goal from Shannon Hawley, this would be their only goal in the first half of the game. The key factor in Orange and Black’s win was their strong defensive play, which only allowed the Blue Hens to put one goal on the board for the first thirty minutes of the game. After Hawley’s goal at 26:12, Princeton went on a five-goal run with points from players including junior midfielder Olivia Hompe, freshmen midfielder Elizabeth George and a second goal by Gersoff. Sophomore midfielder Abby Finkelston also had some major contributions in this first half, scoring a goal assisted by a side pass from Hompe to make the score 6-1. With 4:49 left in the first, Casey Lyons scored an unassisted goal and Hawley added a second to the game to make the score 6-3 at half.

Delaware continued their three-goal streak in the second half to tie the game at 6-6 with 10 minutes left. The Blue Hens had multiple opportunities to take the lead after posting nine shots (three on goal) in the final five minutes of action. Junior goalie Ellie DeGarmo, who was recently placed on the Tewaaraton Watch List, stayed strong in the second half and the Tiger’s defense held their own. DeGarmo stopped a total of 13 goals and junior defensive player Amanda Leavell caused a game-high five Blue Hens turnovers and had three groundballs. At 5:22 on the clock, the Tigers’ leading scorer, Hompe, netted the game-winner, her lone tally of the game, with 5:22 left on the clock.

After five straight games on the road, the Tigers will return home this weekend for an Ivy League rivalry battle against Yale. The last time the Tigers faced off against the Bulldogs was last Spring in New Haven, where the Tigers won 7-5. Hoping to achieve the same success, Princeton will host Yale this year on Sherrerd Field at Class of 1952 Stadium on Saturday, April 9 at 3:00 p.m. The game will be available to watch on the Ivy League Digital Network.