The Adrian College women’s lacrosse team defeated Wittenberg College on Saturday, improving their season record to 10-2. Riding junior attack Olivia Duncan’s five goal performance, the team cemented their place atop the MWLC conference.
“This year has been an adjustment, but now that everyone has adapted we’re working hard to finish the season strong, hopefully making the tournament,” senior defense Katrina Rabishaw said.
The Bulldogs came out strong in the first half, scoring four goals in the first eight minutes of the game. After Adrian seemed to let up a bit, the Tigers scored five of the next seven goals to pull the score within one at halftime.
“We came out a little flat and the game was close at half. Once we relaxed and played our game, things started going our way and we were able to come out as the successful team that we know we are,” said senior midfielder Amanda Lambert.
After regrouping during halftime the Bulldogs surrendered an early Wittenberg goal, tying the game four minutes into the second half. Undeterred, the Bulldogs regained the lead just 25 seconds later and would not look back. After scoring 12 of the next 18 goals, Adrian went on to beat Wittenberg 18-11.
Besides Duncan’s five goals, Adrian saw multi-goal production from four other players. Junior attack Stacey Birlson, senior attack Rachel Johnston, and Lambert each recorded three goals, while senior midfielder Lindsey Day had two. Senior attack Meghan Reynolds and junior midfielder Cassie Hoyez rounded out the scoring for the Bulldogs, each notching one goal.
Adrian not only dominated on the scoreboard but also the stat sheet, where they lead in every statistical category. The Bulldogs had the advantage in shots 30-28, turnovers 12-15, draw controls 20-11, ground balls 37-26, and clears 13-12.
Another major contributor to the Bulldog’s success was the strong play of senior goalie Laura Finfrock, who made big saves when the team needed it.
“We started out really slow, but picked it up in the second half. Our goalie really kept us in the game,” said Day.
Finfrock got the win in net for the Bulldogs, recording 13 saves in the process. She is now 8-2 on the season, toting a .488 save percentage and a 9.53 goals against average.
Although they have been successful, the team knows they must continue to do the little things to make it deep into the post-season.
“We have to stay focused and not play so frantically. All of our success has come from our discipline and patience on the field. That is the key to our success,” said Lambert.
The team will have the rest of the week off before returning to action Sunday against Sewanee in a conference matchup. The game will we played at Sacred Heart Academy (Louisville) at 1:30 p.m.
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