The 1-7 Quinnipiac women’s lacrosse team took on the 2-7 Mount Saint Mary in Hamden, Connecticut on Saturday. Coming off a midweek loss in Poughkeepsie, New York to Marist, the Bobcats were looking to secure their first win of MAAC play against the Mountaineers.
The Bobcats would not start well, as Mount St. Mary’s Anna Salerno would start the scoring in the game’s first two minutes, putting the Mountaineers up one. Junior midfielder EllaGrace Delmond would respond about five minutes later tying the game up. The first quarter would end with the Mountaineers up 4-2 behind a goal from three separate goal scorers. Sophomore attacker Kate Bendowski would get a goal back for the Bobcats.
“We didn’t start off great,” said interim head coach Jordan Christopher. “Things have not really gone our way all season.”
The Bobcats would keep pace with the Mountaineers in the second quarter, however, as the two teams traded goals for the better half of the quarter. EllaGrace Delmond added her second of the day, and junior attacker Abby Wise and sophomore attack Mia Delmond added to the Bobcats tally. Despite this effort, the Mountaineers would maintain their lead going into the half, 10-5.
The story of the game for the Bobcats was the offensive production from the Delmond sisters, both EllaGrace and Mia notching seven and three goals respectively in the matchup.
The Bobcats came out of the half with a new defensive strategy, “we shifted our entire defensive scheme.” stated Christopher.
The Bobcats switch in defensive scheme gave the extra push they needed to get back into the game. Delmond would open the scoring for the Bobcats in the third, but the Mountaineer’s Christina Haspert would respond no less than a minute later.
The two teams would trade multiple goals throughout the third, then, with 4:42 left in the third, Mackenzi Furlong of Mount St. Mary’s would score her sixth goal of the game. This led to Christopher replacing starting goalie junior Lindsay Mazzuco with senior goalie Hadley Bosworth.
The switch would prove useful for the Bobcats, as Bosworth was able to settle in pretty quickly. The Mountaineers would continue to lead heading into the fourth up 14-10.
The Bobcats would start the fourth off right. Delmond would tally her sixth goal of the game. Quinnipiac brought the score within three, but then the Mountaineer’s Furlong would get her seventh of the game. The Bobcats would not quit, as they would bounce back throughout the fourth and they would bring the score to 16-15 with just under three minutes to play.
The Bobcat’s last offensive possession would end in a turnover, and the Bobcats would lose to the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers 16-15.
Christopher stated what the team needs to improve on. “The last couple we have not started strong and dug ourselves some holes, so if we can start stronger, that will help us.”
Looking ahead, the Bobcats will take on the Manhattan Jaspers on Wednesday, April. 3 at 3 p.m. in Rochdale, New York.
