Jonas Powell, Staff Photographer

The women’s lacrosse team (8-5, 4-4 NESCAC) had one of their biggest wins of the season last Tuesday. They squared off with Trinity—the eighth-ranked team in the country—and bested the Bantams 11-8. Abigail Horst ’19 led the way with four goals, while Abby Manning ’20 and Sydney Prokupek ’21 each netted two goals. Trailing by four at the half, Trinity plotted a comeback, but fell short on the road.

Then on Saturday, it looked as if women’s lacrosse would ice out the Bowdoin Polar Bears on Saturday, April 14. They were clearly in control of the game, taking a four-goal lead with just 20 minutes remaining. Yet the No. 18 opponent (10-3, 5-3 NESCAC) took strides in the last 18:45 of the game, outscoring the Dirty Birds 9-3 to clinch a 13-11 overall win. The mounted surge over the Cardinals left many astonished, as it seemed clear that Wesleyan had dominated the field for the majority of the game.

Wesleyan was able to take over the first half with help by Allegra Grant ’20, who made an impressive five saves. The goaltender was able to give Wesleyan a great defensive start to save them from getting behind early in the game. As the team started to trade opening goals, the Cardinals jumped out on top, outscoring the Polar Bears 6-1 over the final 19:20 of the opening period.

By halftime, the Dirty Birds carried a 7-3 lead and seemed to be on top. Horst was a huge part of the offensive charge for the Cardinals as she sparked their surge with three goals within the first period.

As both of the squads opened the second period, goals went back and forth before Wesleyan started to hold an 8-4 edge with 21:15 to go thanks to midfielder Manning, who gave them an extra goal. However, the Bowdoin lacrosse team began to close in as they used a quick 4-0 surge within the next four minutes and 30 seconds to tie the game as one of their players scored twice within the short timespan.

Despite the quick offensive push from the Polar Bears, the Dirty Birds remained calm and began to retake the lead, holding a one-goal advantage at 9-8 and then 10-9. The Cardinals continued to hold Bowdoin down with under eight minutes to go.

However, the Polar Bears were able to tie the game at 10-10 and took the lead just 32 seconds later with a draw control. Wesleyan was unable to respond and in the next five minutes, Bowdoin finished off the game with two more goals and went on to down the Cardinals.

Horst enjoyed a terrific day with a team-high of five goals, four of them coming in the first half. Caitlin Wood ’19 added in an impressive two goals while Jordan Ansell ’21 put in defensive work by causing a game-high of three turnovers. Grant finished with impressive defense, helping the teams as he tallied 13 saves.

The Polar Bears held a 30-22 advantage in shots thanks in great part to a 19-9 edge in the second half, while the Dirty Birds cashed in on 5-7 free position shots. They had a 19-7 edge on the ground balls against the Polar Bears, but were unable to control the game as they committed 22 turnovers. The Polar Bears committed a mere 13. Bowdoin also controlled the game in draw controls, besting Wesleyan, 14-12.

Wesleyan returns to action on their home field on Saturday, April 21, as they will be hosting Hamilton at noon as they honor the team’s three seniors: Sarah Bennett, Julia Black, and Dana Mitchell.

Kevin Le can be reached at ktle@wesleyan.edu.