Ithaca's Comeback Falls Short, Bombers Suffer 9-8 Loss to Cortland
ITHACA, N.Y. – The 14th-ranked Ithaca College women’s lacrosse team (3-3) rewrote a four-goal deficit to pull within one of third-ranked Cortland (6-1), but fell short suffering a 9-8 setback Saturday afternoon at Higgins Stadium.
Ithaca took an early 2-0 lead but Cortland answered with five consecutive to power to a 5-2 lead at the seven-minute mark of the first. Ithaca recorded two of the next three to pull within 6-4 at intermission. A Bomber goal opened the second half, but Cortland managed a 9-5 gap with three straight scores. The Bombers netted three over the final 12 minutes of the game, but time expired before Ithaca could find an equalizer.
Senior Nikki Dahl posted a team-best four points on two goals and two assists. Freshman Allison Runyon added two scores and one assist. Sophomore Molly Fischer recorded her first assists of the season, dishing out the final two of the game. Seniors Tracy Rivas, Michelle Avery, Kaitlyn Hoffay and Sam Whitney netted one goal apiece.
Junior Jenna Marchinetti had three ground balls and three caused turnovers. Senior Jess Worthman, who led the team with five ground balls, made nine stops in goal for the Bombers.
The game was tight across the board. Cortland owned a 22-21 edge in shots and a 17-13 margin in ground balls, while Ithaca led the draw count, 11-8. The Bombers committed 15 turnovers to the Red Dragons’ 14.
Ithaca returns to action Friday, March 29 with its Empire 8 season opener at Stevens Institute of Technology at 12 p.m.