On a beautiful March 30 afternoon in front of the home fans at Jacobs Field, the AU Women’s Lacrosse team (5-6, 3-0 PL) beat visiting Bucknell (1-10 0-4 PL) 11-6 to move into a tie for first place in the Patriot League.
After a rough start to the season with a six-game losing streak, the Eagles have won their last five games.
The first half was a seesaw affair with the Eagles and Bison trading the lead. The Eagles struck first with sophomore Jordan Harrington finding the back of the net for an early 1-0 lead. However, less than a minute later, Katelyn Miller scored for Bucknell, tying the game at one.
AU followed with two consecutive goals to retake the lead. Bucknell answered by scoring four consecutive points to take a 5-3 lead. Emily Maher and Kim Collins scored two goals in the final five minutes to tie the game at 5-5 entering the half.
The second half was dominated by the Eagles. Maher recorded the first score of the second half to give the Eagles a 6-5 lead that they would not relinquish. AU went on a 6-0 run to take a commanding 11-5 lead. Miller would score an additional goal for the Bison to make the final score of 11-6.
Maher led the Eagles in scoring with three goals. Harrington and Nicole Lombardo each recorded two goals. Goalie Teal Harrison had 10 saves for the Eagles.
For Bucknell, Miller led the team in scoring with three points while Ryan Wenk, Sophie Kleinert and Sam Rickels each had one point. Goalie Caroline O’ Neill had only four saves for Bucknell.
“I didn’t think we played a complete game,” AU Interim Head Coach Emma Wallace said. “While the defense was consistent, the attack was sloppy. We won despite not playing our best lacrosse. In the future, we need to focus more on the need to play a complete game.”
The next game for the Eagles is on April 2 at Jacobs Field against No. 9 Virginia (6-6, 0-4 ACC).
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