The AU women's lacrosse team lost to Holy Cross Saturday, dropping the contest to their Patriot League rivals, 14-12, in the last time the Eagle's seniors will play at home in the regular season.
The weather didn't cooperate as rain pounded the Jacobs Recreational Complex, dampening Senior Day for AU's Laura Barnes, Kathleen Finnegan, Moriah Linnell and Sarah Mackintosh. It also washed out the Eagles' perfect record in league play.
After never leading the entire game, AU made an impressive comeback attempt in the last 6 minutes 8 seconds. Trailing by five goals, the Eagles were sparked by an aggressive charge by freshman Danielle Rhinehart, whose score brought them to within four. The Eagles didn't stop there, scoring two more goals before time ran out.
"I'm really proud of how the team played today," AU coach Ashley Flanigan said. "They played with a lot of passion, a lot of fire. They definitely didn't give up."
The Eagles came into Saturday's matchup tied with the Crusaders with 3-0 marks in PL play. But Holy Cross showed dominance right from the start, scoring first and playing tough defense, which prevented the Eagles from scoring for the first four minutes of play.
American charged ahead ten minutes into the first half when a goal by Linnell put the Eagles ahead for the first and only time during the game. The Eagles' captain put out two goals and two assists in her last home game
Holy Cross dominated the first half, going on a 5-0 run to lead 7-3 and holding the Eagles to that deficit with under five minutes to play. AU lost momentum, forcing a lot of sloppy turnovers that contributed to it trailing 8-5 at halftime.
The Eagles exploded on the field to start the second half, as junior Caithlin Gorman scored a goal in the first minute.
Sophomore Jackie Lane followed with two consecutive scores, tying things up on an assist by her twin sister, Lauren Lane. The Lanes combined for two more goals, ending the match with a game-high four points apiece.
Holy Cross followed up with a 6-1 tear, highlighted by aggressive play by the Crusaders and star junior Patricia Sutton. The PL's leasing scorer dropped in her 45th goal of the season with just under eight minutes to play before the Eagles started on their comeback that fell short
AU held the advantage on draw controls, winning 16 to the Crusaders' 11. The loss drops AU to 3-1 in league play and 5-7 overall.
"Hopefully we can carry this momentum into the [PL] tournament," Flanigan said. "I think the next time we meet [Holy Cross] it will be a different outcome"
