CLAREMONT, Calif. – The University of Redlands women's lacrosse team (9-5, 5-4 SCIAC) held another road lead after the first quarter against one of the best in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), as they were out in front of No. 27 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS), 4-3, after 15 minutes Wednesday. But the Athenas would come back scoring 16 of the final 24 goals as the Bulldogs fell, 19-12.
CMS opened the game with the first goal before Emily Webster (Mission Viejo, CA) scored less than a minute later to tie the game. It was an important tally as she failed to score the last time these two teams met, so getting her involved early proved valuable.
After the Athenas retook the lead, Webster and Nicole Sanders (Irvine, CA) fed Gwenyth Guico (Camano Island, WA) for back-to-back goals to give UR their first lead of the game, 3-2, with 6:36 on the clock.
Following a scoreless period of just over eight minutes, the Bulldogs conceded with 2:25 remaining in the opening quarter, but Maya Weaver (Tustin, CA) found Guico for a first quarter hat trick and a 4-3 UR advantage.
In the second quarter the Athenas looked to pull away with a 4-1 run with April Bryant's goal at the 13:01 mark being the Bulldogs lone tally. But a 3-1 response from the Maroon and Grey tied the game at eight with 3:24 to go in the opening half. Jacqueline Landucci (San Mateo, CA), Sanders, and Bryant each connected during the run.
CMS, however, ended the first half with the final two goals, which put Redlands down two after 30 minutes of action.
Just over two minutes into the second half, Webster scored an unassisted goal to make it a one-score game, 10-9. But a 4-0 ensuing CMS run stunted Redlands' momentum finding themselves down five, 14-9.
The Bulldog defense, similar to the first quarter, held the Athenas scoreless for more than nine minutes, while Sanders and Ruby Czajkowski (Charlotte, NC) scored to cut the deficit to three, 14-11, as the third came to an end.
The fourth quarter, though, was dominated by the Athenas who scored the first five goals with the Bulldogs not finding the back of the net until there was only 4:59 remaining when Webster added her fourth point of the night on an assist to Sophia Rangel's (Woodland Hills, CA).
Despite a 30-3 deficit in draw controls won, the Bulldogs were highly efficient, clearing 20-of-22 attempts and turning defense into offensive possessions. They also had seven fewer turnovers and goalkeeper Courtney Myers (Gig Harbor, WA) made 12 saves as she faced 28 shots on goal.
Webster and Sanders each had four points, Sanders added four ground balls and three caused turnovers, Vanessa Flexen (Murrieta, CA) had three ground balls and a caused turnover, Jenny Quinonez Diaz (Menlo Park, CA) forced three turnovers, and both Lizzy Weaver (Tustin, CA) and Emilie Duputel (Burtonsville, MD) added two caused turnovers.
Redlands has one more regular season game remaining on Saturday, April 25 at 12:00 p.m. (noon) when they host No. 7 Pomona-Pitzer.
