The Wesleyan women’s lacrosse team is truly at the top of its game this season. Over the last month and a half, the Cardinals have faced some of the most competitive teams in the country and proven time and time again that they are an absolute force to be reckoned with.

Their season opened with a bang on Saturday, March 4 as the Red and Black easily defeated Bates 15–3. This was followed by a swift 15–5 victory over Babson on Wednesday, March 8. 

But in their third game, the Cardinals found themselves facing stiff competition for the first time this season as they traveled to Lancaster, Pennsylvania to take on No. 6 nationally ranked Franklin & Marshall College. 

The game got off to a slow start with only one goal from each team in the first quarter. However, the second was a completely different story, as the Cards scored six goals, including four unanswered, putting the score at 7–3 by halftime. But the Diplomats were not going down without a fight. The teams traded goals throughout the third resulting in a tight 10–8 Wesleyan lead by the end of the quarter. But the Cardinals remained resilient even as the Diplomats continued to apply pressure. Both teams scored twice in the fourth quarter, ending in a 12–10 win for the Cards.

Captain Gil Horst ’23 applauded the team’s ability to pull off the win even when it looked like the odds were against them. 

“We had a ton of yellow cards and we were [a] man down for what felt like an entire quarter of the game,” Horst said. “But instead of letting that momentum shift take over the game, we just stayed calm and composed, and that’s something we’ve been working on building throughout the season.”

The victory marks the first time that Wesleyan has defeated a Top 10-ranked team since beating No. 1 Gettysburg College in the 2019 NCAA Quarterfinal.

Following their win in Pennsylvania, the Cards flew out to California for two handily earned non-conference victories over No. 20 Pomona-Pitzer Colleges (14–6) and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (19–6) on Monday, March 13 and Wednesday, March 12.

The Cardinals then returned to conference play with their matchup against No. 12 Colby on Sunday, March 19. The Mules got off to a heartstop with a four-goal run early in the first period. The Red and Black fought back and ended the quarter trailing 4–6. The Cardinals managed to tie up the score 6–6 at the start of the second with back-to-back unassisted goals by captain Olivia Lai ’23. But once again, the Mules pulled ahead and were up 7–8 by the half. The Cardinals caught up again in the third to make the score 10–10 at the end of the quarter. The teams traded goals during the fourth, but with four minutes to go, the Mules scored the last goal of the game, bringing the final score to 12–13 in Colby’s favor.

Despite this result, the team still reflects on the game as a valuable learning experience.

“It was a tough loss, but I think afterwards we were able to figure out where we needed to fix what was going on and what worked for us,” captain Kate Balicki ’23 said. “And I think we were able to connect a lot more from that game on.”

However, the Cardinals were not down for long, and came back the next weekend on Saturday, March 25 with a dominating showing over No. 16 Bowdoin. The final score of 14–5 tied the record for the smallest number of goals that Wesleyan has conceded to Bowdoin in the two teams’ matchup history. Laura Baine ’24 also made history in the game as the 19th Cardinal in program history to achieve 100 career points, finishing the game with two goals and one assist.

The following weekend, the Cardinals took on No. 22 Hamilton. In spite of their 1–3 conference record, the Continentals proved to be difficult opponents for the Red and Black. By the end of the first half, the Cardinals were leading 7–4, but the Continentals came out hard in the third and put away three goals unanswered to tie up the score. The team knew better than to let that fluster them. 

“I think that when we went up early we got slightly complacent,” Horst said. “Playing in such a competitive league, you can’t do that because any team is good enough to beat you if you slip up for a little bit. But [head coach] Kim [Williams] did a really good job calming our nerves and recognizing it was a time to build us up and make us feel like ‘It’s okay that the game is tied, but what’s important is the next play.’ That made it easier for us to take back control.”

And the Cards did just that by putting away five goals unanswered to win the game 12–7 and continuing their hot streak on Wednesday, April 5 with a decisive 17–7 victory over No. 15 Amherst. By the end of the first half, the Cardinals were already up 9–2. The third period saw the Cardinals continue to dominate as they extended their lead to an impressive 15–4. Though the Mammoths rounded off the game with a three-goal run, ultimately, they were unable to make up the deficit, and the Cardinals earned their highest ever score against the Mammoths in the two teams’ matchup history.

Haley McLaughlin ’24 praised the team’s ability to pull out such a high-margin win, especially after the previous week’s much narrower victory over Hamilton.

“I think Amherst was a super important game because it was one of the first times where we came out strong, we maintained that strength, and then we finished strong on both ends of the field,” McLaughlin said. “It showed us that when we really play our game and when everyone is on, we can be unstoppable.”

In their next game, on Saturday, April 8, the Cardinals took on Middlebury, the No. 1 ranked team in the country. The day started off rocky for the Cards as the Panthers ripped eight goals unanswered to open the game, and by the end of the first half were up 2–10. As the third period started, the Red and Black began to change course and applied steady pressure to the Panthers throughout the second half of the game. But this was not enough to overcome the deficit, and the game ended in a 9–16 loss for the Red and Black. Though the game did not end with a win for the Cards, there were bright spots throughout the game, including when Lai became the second-fastest and 20th Cardinal overall in program history to reach 100 career goals.

McLaughlin also noted the team’s ability to turn the game around in the second half as an indicator of their competitiveness.

“Obviously it wasn’t the outcome we wanted,” McLaughlin said. “But that second half really did show we are able to play with a team of that prominence. We’re right up there with them. We just can’t give up that large of a deficit in the beginning, which I think we’ve learned since then.”

Four days later and eager for redemption, the Cards headed to No. 13 Trinity. At first, the two teams appeared evenly matched with the first quarter concluding in a 4–4 tie. But as the second began, both teams ramped up the aggression and the Cards managed to pull ahead with a spectacular six-goal run that helped bring the score to 13–8 by the end of the first half. The Bantams narrowed the Cardinals’ lead to 14–12 in the third with three goals. However, the Red and Black ripped five goals unanswered at the start of the fourth to reestablish a strong lead and claim a 20–13 win. This was their highest-scoring game of the season thus far. Meanwhile, after securing a goal in the third quarter, Kendall Mittleman ’23 became the third Cardinal of the season to reach 100 career points.

Horst highlighted the team’s ability to pull out the victory, even as the Bantams fought hard throughout the entire game.

“Once the momentum shifted, we did such a good job of putting the game away,” Horst said. “It was our only 20-goal-scoring game [this season]. We had ten different scorers that day. Those are both really good outcomes. Yes, it was hard when they started to come back, but it’s okay to be excited that we pulled through and won the game.”

This past weekend, the Cardinals faced arguably one of their toughest matchups of the season on Saturday, April 15 as they went up against No. 5 nationally ranked Tufts, who at the time had lost only one conference game to the still undefeated Middlebury. But even against undoubtedly talented competition, the Cards were not daunted by the challenge.

“I don’t think much changed in terms of preparing to play against Tufts last weekend,” Lai wrote in a message to The Argus. “While we do make some minor game-to-game adjustments based on who we’re playing, our overall approach to Saturday was just doing what we do best…and trusting that the rest will take care of itself.” 

The Cards got off to a dazzling start, opening the game with a four-goal run before the Jumbos managed to find the back of the net, bringing the score to 4–2 by the end of the first quarter. But as the second began, the Cards responded brilliantly with six goals unanswered to put the score at an astounding 10–2 at the half. The Jumbos applied consistent pressure throughout the following periods, but even with their four-goal run at the end of the fourth, they were unable to make up the deficit and the Red and Black clinched a spectacular 14–10 victory. 

The following day, the Cards added another win to their record with their 11–3 takedown of Endicott College.

Next, the Cardinals will face one of their most anticipated matchups of the year as they take on No. 15 Williams this Saturday, April 22. Despite their lower rank, the matchup will no doubt be a competitive one, and with the Little Three title on the line, the Red and Black are ready to show out as always.

“Despite the added excitement of having the opportunity to potentially win the Little 3 this weekend, the team’s approach to Saturday should be just like any other game, which is just playing OUR game,” Lai wrote. “My biggest goal is to come out as hot as we did last weekend while also maintaining a high-intensity level of play for a full 60 minutes.”

This puts the Cardinals at No. 6 in the national ranking while their 6–2 conference record makes them tied for second in the NESCAC standings. These results are outstanding on their own, but when understood in the broader context of the Wesleyan women’s lacrosse program, they become even more impressive.

In 2015, the Cardinals were in the midst of an eight-season losing season streak and had won just four conference games between 2010 and 2015. Less than 10 years later, the Cardinals are now one of the most competitive teams in the nation and a serious contender for this year’s NESCAC and NCAA Tournaments. Such a turnaround is not an easy feat, but the team unanimously agrees on the reason for the dramatic transformation: Williams.

“Without a doubt, all of the success of our team is because of Kim,” Horst said. “She’s an unbelievable coach. She’s completely changed this program [into] a top-20 program for the last five or six years. Yes, there’s talent [on this] team. But she turns that talent into a team culture that makes us as successful as we are.”

Balicki added that given the upward trajectory of the team, she is looking forward to seeing how the Cardinals progress this season and beyond.

“I think that the sky’s the limit for this group, and I’m really excited to see how we convert on these opportunities we have to play against the top teams in the nation,” Balicki said. “We’ve earned a name for ourselves.”

Erin Byerly can be reached at ebyerly@wesleyan.edu.