On  Feb. 22, the Bison women’s lacrosse team lost a tough game against the La Salle Explorers 12-11. After scoring 10 goals in the first half, the Bison battled defensively throughout the second half, ultimately allowing La Salle to come back and top the Orange and Blue. The Bison now stand at a 2-2 record on the season.

Tegan Warren ’20 led the team offensively, collecting five points on three goals and two assists. Caroline Walsh ’21, Eve Calabria ’21, Julia Bradbury ’21 and Lillie Hunt ’20 also added goals.

Beginning the game at an exceptionally fast pace, the Orange and Blue strode to an early lead after allowing the Explorers to open the scoring. After scoring four goals in 3:56 seconds, the Bison held a 9-5 lead, going on to make it 10-7 before the conclusion of the first half.

The second half of the game consisted of a back-and-forth battle between the two teams. With 21:29 remaining in the game, the Explorers tied the game up at 10 apiece. Morgan Steinhacker ’20 scored next at 19:55, only for La Salle to rebound with a goal of their own.

Collecting a critical draw control with under two minutes remaining, the Orange and Blue raced downfield, only to force a contested shot that led to the Explorer goalie making a critical save. 

With the clock ticking down, Steinhacker once again stepped up to collect a critical ground ball, leading to a Bison timeout. After crafting a beautiful play, the Bison fell just short when a shot from Tace Sutherland ’20 was once again saved, sealing the victory for the Explorers.

Back-up goalie Caitlin Tucker ’22 had a career-high 12 saves, 11 of which came in the second half. Also contributing to the defensive effort was Jessie Britton ’20, who caused a team-high four caused turnovers while collecting three ground balls.

“If I could describe our current team culture in three words it would be hardworking, persevering and family. I choose hardworking because we bust our butts every day during practice and lift, always pushing each other to get better. Persevering because we had to deal with a coaching change right before our season, but our team stuck together through it all,” Tucker said. “Also, not letting previous seasons records determine our future success. Finally, family because we truly all get along and have each other’s backs. We’ve stuck together through thick and thin, and we play, lose, and win all together.”

On Wednesday, Feb. 26, the Bison fell in a tough battle against the UMBC Retrievers in a final score of 13-9. UMBC held the advantage throughout the entire game in shots (35-28), ground balls (16-13) and draw controls (17-7). They also went 4-for-8 on their free-position attempts while holding the University scoreless on just two attempts. Despite their valiant efforts, the Bison fell to an overall record of 2-3 for the season, while remaining 0-0 in the Patriot League. 

The Orange and Blue will be back in action on Feb. 29 when they take on Robert Morris at 2 p.m.