Though the women’s lacrosse team played at Hofstra on Saturday, it looked at least for the first half that it had left its focus back in Ithaca.
“We had some great moments, but there were definitely some weak spots,” said junior Allison Schindler. “Some of our basic stick skills broke down.”
Jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead on freshman Katherine Simmons’ third goal of the season, the No. 20 Red (1-1) appeared ready to knock off its second ranked opponent in as many weeks.
However, the Pride (4-0) quickly and decisively answered back. After getting the equalizer five minutes after the opening the score, Hofstra scored six more goals to grab a 7-1 halftime lead before adding one more goal early the second half to complete an 8-0 run.
Turnovers were the achilles heel for Cornell in that first period. Sloppy play resulted in 10 Cornell turnovers, which played a major factor in the 19-9 shot advantage Hofstra enjoyed in the half.
“We had a tough time with our transition game [and] getting the ball out of our end.” Schindler said. “Our throwing and catching skills weren’t there … it was all stuff that we could control.”
Draw control also proved have a major influence on the contest. With Hofstra enjoying a 13-10 advantage over the Red in that category throughout the course of the game, it played a major role in the teams’ momentum.
“Draw control was a huge factor,” Schindler said. “Whoever controlled the draw was able to take the ball down the field and score. We started to do better in the second half because we began to win the draws.”
Down 8-1 early in the second-half, the Red, and especially senior Kristen Smith, gave no signs of giving the game up. Smith’s hat trick joined by scores from sophomores Lindsey Moore and Anne Riordan contributed to a 5-0 Cornell run that cut the lead down to two. Hofstra though, would respond with another run of its own. Sparked by three goals in less than two minutes to reopen its lead, the Pride used a 6-1 stretch to close out the 14-7 victory.
“They are a really good team, but we gave them good fight,” Schindler said.
Taking advantage of a deep offensive attack, the Pride got goals from seven different players as Casey McGrath, Becky Thorn and Jill Wiencke each earned a hat trick to pace the squad. Kim Hiller also played a major role in the Hofstra scoring, collecting four points and two goals.
On the other side of the field, the Cornell scoring was almost as spread out, as five different players contributing for the Red. Sophomore Margaux Viola earned the team’s last goal of the contest, while freshman Noelle Down and Schindler each were accredited for one assist on the day.
The real difference in the game was the number of scoring opportunities. Though both squads managed to put two-thirds of its attempts on net, the Red were held to significantly fewer chances by a 34-23 margin.
Junior goalie Maggie Fava made nine stops for the Red, while Hofstra netminder Masise Osteen received the win after playing for the majority of the game.
Archived article by Scott Reich
Sun Staff Writer