Women’s lacrosse to play 1st unranked opponent

The Boston University women’s lacrosse team will be searching for its first win of the season Wednesday when the Terriers take on Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H.

BU (0-3) has had a shaky start to its season, dropping its three first games to No. 1 University of North Carolina, No. 3 University of Maryland, and No. 10 University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

Last Wednesday, the Terriers jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the first half against UMass (5-0). However, attack and reigning Atlantic-10 Player of the Year Katie Ferris and the Minutewomen were able to come back within the first half and take the lead. UMass held control of the rest of the game and the final score stood at 11-8 in favor of the Minutewomen.

The game against UMass marked the closest contest of the season thus far for the team. The Terriers saw three goals from sophomore attack Sofia Robins and three points from junior attack Lindsey Weiner. Redshirt sophomore attack Mallory Collins also netted a goal, something she has done in each of the three games thus far.

In order to find success against the Big Green (2-1), BU coach Liz Robertshaw said the team needs to implement what it has done during practice.

“We need to force the shots we want to see and the defense needs to continue the good work they’ve shown in practice,” Robertshaw said. “We need to play hard and battle for 60 minutes,” Robertshaw said. “We need to create multiple opportunities down on attack to get some in the cage. Whoever has the ball in their stick more is going to win the game, and if we increase time on attack we’ll have a better game.”

The Big Green started out the season by winning two out-of-conference games against the University of Connecticut and the University of New Hampshire. Their single loss came Saturday to fellow Ivy League opponent Yale University.

The Terriers last met the Big Green home at Nickerson Field last season. Dartmouth, propelled by attack Lindsey Allard’s hat trick, won the game 12-7.  Allard also tallied an assist in the Big Green victory.

Wednesday marks the 17th match up between the two clubs. The Big Green have taken three of the last four and hold the all time series lead 12-5. The Terriers’ last victory against Dartmouth came in 2011 during a 9-7 win.

“The games have been back-and-forth the past couple of years, so we’re not taking this game lightly,” Robertshaw said. “It’s going to be a challenge.”

The tilt with Dartmouth will be the Terriers’ first game against an opponent ranked outside of the top-10 in the national rankings. Despite this team not being ranked as highly as previous opponents, Robertshaw said the Terriers should still put in the same effort they did against the other teams.

“Just because Dartmouth isn’t ranked in the top 10 doesn’t mean the team is taking this game any lighter than previous games,” Robertshaw said. “We’re not taking any pressure off, the game is going to be a battle.”

For the Terriers, goalkeeping may be the key in claiming victory. BU’s freshman goalie, Caroline Meegan, started the last two games against Maryland (6-0) and UMass and holds a 14.43 goals-against average and a .381 save percentage. She also has 24 saves so far this season.

On the other end of the field, Dartmouth will look to senior Kristen Giovaniello. The goalie has made 26 so far this season, including 10 saves against UConn and 11 stops against Yale. The senior currently holds a .464 save percentage.

In addition to strong goaltending, Dartmouth also wields Ivy League Co-Offensive Player of the Week in junior Sarah Burne. She tallied a career-high six goals and two assists against UConn, propelling the team to a 14-11 victory.

“Dartmouth is always a loud and intimidating team to play against,” Robertshaw said. “I need the team to block that out and have more composure and confidence on the field while sticking to the game plan.”