No. 15 Ithaca Wins Fifth Straight, Edges William Smith, 9-6
ITHACA, N.Y. – The 15th-ranked Ithaca College women's lacrosse team (6-4) won its fifth straight game Tuesday defeating visiting William Smith (3-7), 9-6, at Higgins Stadium.
Ithaca led the entire game, though William Smith kept within striking distance throughout. The Bombers owned a 5-3 edge at the half. Outshooting Ithaca 15-10 in the second, the Herons twice pulled within one. The Bombers tallied three of the final four scores to post the program's fifth straight victory over William Smith.
William Smith outshot Ithaca, 27-22, and held a 10-8 advantage in draw controls. The Blue & Gold collected 25 ground balls and the Herons scooped up 22.
Two Bombers recorded hat tricks. Sophomore
Riley Marion had a career- and game-best three goals and added an assist and a team-high three draws. Junior
Molly Fischer also netted three. Sophomore
Ally Runyon scored twice and added an assist. Defensively, junior
Niki Standera forced a pair of turnovers. Freshman
Emily Ross stopped 12 shots in goal to earn the win.
Marion opened all scoring on a free-position shot at 26:49. The Herons answered less than two minutes later. Junior
Emily Peters capitalized on a Runyon feed at 22:32 for a 3-2 advantage before 12 scoreless minutes ticked off the clock. William Smith tipped off a four-goal stretch to even action, 2-2, at 10:12. The Bombers tallied the next three in the span of 43 seconds. Runyon went unassisted for a man-up goal at 9:20 before finding the back of the net on a free-position opportunity at 8:46. Marion won the resulting draw and drove down field for a 5-2 lead just nine seconds later. William Smith finalized first-half scoring at 2:15, 5-3.
The teams traded two scores each over the first 10 minutes of the second. William Smith scored 1:45 into the frame. Fischer went unassisted to score her first of three at the 21-minute mark. William Smith answered immediately, but Fischer used a Marion feed for a 7-5 gap at 19:42. Senior
Becky Guzzo found Fischer for her third straight and a three-goal cushion at 15:06. Ten minutes passed before the Herons scored their final of the night. Marion secured the win with her third of the game and 23rd of the season at 1:30.
The Bombers will kick off a five-game road stretch on Saturday, April 12 at Nazareth. The Empire 8 contest will begin at 1 p.m