Women’s lacrosse loses 2 games on the road, wins 1 at Nickerson Field

Over spring break, the Boston University women’s lacrosse team suffered two consecutive losses at the No. 8 University of Notre Dame and the University of Denver before returning to Nickerson Field to come away with a victory against No. 15 Ohio State University.

In their first road game of the season, the Terriers (2-3) were put through an early test facing Notre Dame (6-0) in South Bend, Ind. BU began the game strong, finishing out the first half on a 4-0 run to take an 8-4 lead into the locker room.

But the Fighting Irish came out in the second half firing on all cylinders, going on a four-goal run of their own to knot up the score at eight. After exchanging goals, Notre Dame went on a three-goal run to extend its lead and put pressure on the Terriers, who trailed 14-10 with five minutes remaining.

Although a goal from junior attack Nell Burdis brought the Terriers within three goals, the Fighting Irish closed out the game with two goals for a final score of 16-11.

Senior attack Danielle Etrasco and senior midfielder Kristen Mogavero led the Terriers in scoring with three goals apiece, while Etrasco added an assist to lead the Terriers.

Four days later, the Terriers traveled to Colorado where they faced the University of Denver (7-1) in a tough contest. The Pioneers jumped out to a 3-0 lead that they did not relinquish for the remainder of the game.

The Terriers came out of the locker room in the second half strong, stringing together three straight goals to come within 8-7. Seven different Terriers scored, but they were not able to stop the Pioneer attack and earn the victory.

After experiencing a three-game losing streak, the Terriers sought a much-needed victory, returning home to Nickerson Field and hosting Ohio State University (3-3).

Until the midway point in the first half, the Terriers exchanged goals with the Buckeyes on several occasions. The game was tied five times in the first half before BU went on a run. Sparked by Etrasco’s fourth goal of the game, on her way to a record-breaking performance, the Terriers took a 6-5 lead and went on to add three more goals to take a 9-5 lead into halftime.

After scoring the first two goals of the second half, the Terriers finished the frame strong, leading the rest of the game on their way to a 16-11 victory. “We wanted to get back to focusing on us and playing the full 60 minutes the way we felt we could by being aggressive on defense and taking some chances on attack,” said BU coach Liz Robertshaw.

In the win, the Terriers came out aggressively on the attack, led by the play of Etrasco. She finished the game with 12 points on eight goals and four assists, a BU record. The previous mark was nine points, a feat which has been accomplished nine times in school history, with Etrasco achieving the mark most recently last season against Binghamton University.

“Danielle had a great game, anyone that sees the box score is going to see it,” Robertshaw said. “But what I don’t think people saw was the 13 draw controls or the three caused turnovers. That was what changed the game, that she was consistently getting the ball in her stick … and encouraging us to take chances.”

Also contributing to the scoring for the Terriers was Mogavero, who added six goals on eight shots.

Despite suffering a three-game losing streak, the Terriers were able to pull together and defeat the Buckeyes in a game that might prove to be critical when the time comes to select teams for the NCAA Tournament.

“We really stressed taking chances and believing in your teammates,” Robertshaw said. “If someone wants to go out and try to make a play and be aggressive, everyone has to back them up.”