Cornell women’s lacrosse has squared off against Columbia on 23 occasions all-time and has never dropped a single contest, and yesterday’s match was no exception.
The Red (3-2, 2-0 Ivy) rolled past Columbia (2-5, 0-2 Ivy) 12-9 to win its third straight game.
Though Cornell got off to a shaky start, entering the second half trailing the Lions by one, the Red rallied to outscore Columbia 6-2 in the second period to claim the victory.
The Lions were the first to get on the board, but the teams traded goals throughout the first part of the game, with Columbia having just a 6-7 edge over Cornell heading into halftime.
In the second half, the Red returned with composure and began slashing at Columbia’s lead. After almost six and a half minutes of scoreless play for both sides, freshman midfielder Genevieve DeWinter found the back of the net to equalize the game.
Columbia responded with a goal of its own to retake the lead, but that would be the last time the Red trailed.
Sophomore midfielder Grace Paletta scored with a little over 16 minutes to play and sparked an unanswered four-goal run for the Red.
The Lions brought the game back within two points with slightly over 10 minutes left to play, but junior captain and midfielder Caroline Allen scored once more before the final buzzer sounded to close out the game with a 12-9 victory.
Allen led the way for the Red with a career-high six goals. DeWinter and Paletta each had two goals and sophomore midfielder Ellie Walsh and senior attacker Shannon Bertscha each found the back of the net once.
“I think [this game] again showed our willingness to battle,” said junior captain and defender Mary Kate Bonanni. “We didn’t have the greatest first half, but we really locked it down in the second half and showed a lot of improvement. We definitely still have a lot to work on, and the game showed us that for sure, but I’m confident that we will learn from the game and continue to grow every day.”
The Red will finish up its road stretch when it takes on the Marist Red Foxes on Monday at 3 p.m.
“It’s a very quick turnaround between games,” said senior attacker and captain Sarah Phillips. “So it’s crucial that we dial in on film and scout [our opponents] and that we move forward to focusing on how to best and most accurately prepare for Marist.”