Over spring break, women’s lacrosse (6-6, 2-2 Ivy) hosted Harvard (6-5, 2-2 Ivy) for an in-conference matchup last Saturday.
The Crimson started with the upper-hand, winning the draw and scoring within the first minute of play. Cornell did not let this discourage them, putting themselves on the board minutes later by capitalizing off a free position shot, scored by senior midfielder Bridget Babcock.
“We were focusing on keeping the pedal to the metal and gaining momentum in different ways,” said sophomore attacker Josie Vogel.
The Red scored two additional goals, giving Cornell a two-point lead, 3-1. However, Harvard responded with two goals of their own, knotting the score 3-3 with seven minutes to go in the first. With that, the lead continued to shift between both teams.
Sophomore goalkeeper Ellie Horner saved a free position shot attempted by the Crimson, ensuring that the Red ended the first in the lead, 6-5.
The Red opened the second strong, winning the draw and scoring two goals back to back. However, Harvard was able to capitalize off of a yellow card on senior attacker Amanda Cramer, scoring their first point of the quarter.
Cornell rebounded with a goal, but Harvard answered with two more.
“[Harvard] was making it difficult for us to dodge and defensive slides were easier for them. But we were able to adjust and move the ball quickly, finding pockets in the zones that made it harder for them to slide,” Vogel said.
The Red was able to score one final goal in the quarter, securing them the lead at the half, 10-8.
Cornell started the second half with a man up due to Harvard receiving a yellow card with 25 seconds left in the second quarter.
The Red took advantage of this and won the draw. Cramer scored off of an assist from senior midfielder Shannon Brazier, earning Cornell the first point of the half.
As the quarter progressed, Harvard scored two additional goals, with the Red only scoring one.
Cornell kept the lead the entire quarter and ended ahead, 12-10.
The fourth quarter was a fight for both teams. The Crimson tied up the score, scoring two goals within 40 seconds of each other to start the quarter.
Following these goals, the Red took a timeout to regroup.
Harvard was able to find the back of the net again with over eight minutes left in the half, putting the Crimson in the lead for the first time since the first quarter.
Horner saved seven out of ten of Harvard’s shots on goal, keeping a strong defensive game.
With just a minute and a half remaining, junior midfielder Caitlin Slaminko scored off a free position shot, tying the game and bringing it into overtime. This was Cornell’s first overtime of the season.
“We wanted to stay calm and collected, but also go into overtime with an aggressive attitude,” Vogel said.
The first overtime ended in a tie, with neither team finding the back of the goal. However, the same fate did not result in the second overtime. The second overtime lasted only 21 seconds, with Harvard scoring after winning the draw, resulting in a loss to the Crimson, 14-13.
Cornell will travel to Philadelphia this weekend to face No. 17 Penn (7-4, 3-0 Ivy) on Saturday at noon. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.