On Wednesday in Charlottesville, No. 19 women’s lacrosse (2–3 overall, 1–0 Ivy League) fell 12–10 to No. 21 Virginia (5–4, 3–1 Atlantic Coast Conference). The Orange and Black led 6–3 at halftime, but the Cavaliers’ extra possessions and strong control after the break ultimately led them to a victory.
“Overall, the game did not go our way in the end, but there were definitely bright moments for us as a team,” senior attacker Haven Dora told The Daily Princetonian. “As a unit, we played cohesively and were able to score in a variety of ways.”
Virginia opened the scoring in the first minute but Princeton responded less than two minutes later with a finish from junior midfielder Ella Sloan to tie the game 1–1. The Cavaliers regained the lead soon after, but Sloan continued her strong performance by setting up senior midfielder Maggie Molnar to equalize at 2–2.
The Tigers did well to control the pace for the rest of the quarter. Virginia were granted multiple free-position chances but senior goalkeeper Amelia Hughes stayed sharp, only conceding one more goal with two minutes left in the quarter.
“Our defense forced Virginia to take difficult shots, which set Hughes up for a successful day in the cage,” Dora told the ‘Prince.’ “On offense, we tried to build off that momentum from the defense and push the pace into our offensive end.”
Despite being down 3–2, the Tigers dominated in the second quarter. Sloan scored again in the sixth minute on a man-up free position to tie the game, and junior attacker Meg Morrisroe followed just minutes later to give the Orange and Black its first lead at 4–3.
With three minutes left to go in the quarter, senior attacker Jami MacDonald scored off an assist by Dora, and sophomore midfielder Maggie Bacigalupo added another just 40 seconds later, again assisted by Dora. As the half ended, the Tigers found themselves in a strong place up 6–3.
“There were definitely some positives to take away,” MacDonald told the ‘Prince.’ “Offensively and defensively we were very efficient, and as an attacking unit we felt confident in the looks we were generating.”
Unfortunately for the Tigers, however, the second half did not go as well. A free-position goal just two and a half minutes into the third quarter and a quick strike just 40 seconds later by the Cavaliers made it 6–5.
Virginia began to control the draw and generated repeated looks in transition, keeping the Tigers on defense for long stretches. The Cavaliers tied it at 6–6 with 4:53 left in the quarter and scored again a few minutes later to make it 7–6, giving them their first lead since the opening period.
“While we were up at halftime, Virginia came out faster in the second half and quickly closed the gap,” Dora told the ‘Prince.’ “At the end of the day, in the second half, we did not have the ball as much as Virginia and this ultimately contributed to the outcome.”
The fourth quarter was more of a back-and-forth battle. Virginia scored less than a minute into the period to make it 8–6, but Bacigalupo finished a feed from MacDonald shortly after to cut it to 8–7. The Cavaliers extended their lead to 9–7 just a minute and a half later, but Bacigalupo bounced back right away with another goal to make it 9–8.
Sloan then delivered one of the biggest moments of the afternoon, converting a man-up free-position goal to tie the game at 9–9. However, Virginia’s strong control of the draw ultimately tilted the match in their favor as two consecutive man-up goals pushed the Cavaliers ahead 11–9.
Morrisroe scored with four minutes left in the game to bring the Tigers back within one, but Virginia answered less than a minute later to make it 12–10. The remaining three minutes were hard-fought by both teams, but Virginia were ultimately able to hold on and seal the victory.
Sloan finished the game with a new career high of six points, scoring three goals and managing three assists. Bacigalupo added a hat trick of her own, Morrisroe finished with two goals, and MacDonald added one goal and one assist. Dora played a role in nearly half of the Tigers’ goals, managing four assists.
By the end of the game, the Cavaliers held a decisive 19–3 advantage in draw controls and outshot Princeton 41–21. Hughes had a 15-save match, helping keep the Orange and Black within reach the whole afternoon.
“One area we know we need to improve is the draw so we can secure more possessions and build more momentum throughout the game,” MacDonald told the ‘Prince.’ “We’re focused on bringing over the positives from the last few games and continuing to clean up those small details that will make a big difference.”
The Tigers face off against Penn State on Sunday, March 15th at University Park.
Kai Kim is an assistant Sports editor for the ‘Prince’. He can be reached at kaikim[at]princeton.edu.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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