Consider it an appetizer.
A tiny sprinkling of Beanpot magic that normally isn’t even an option on the menu until mid-January.
But the Boston University lacrosse team allowed Beanpot dreaming to enter everyone’s minds after they won two of their three matches at Nickerson Field on Sunday, losing only to Boston College in the Lacrosse Beanpot.
The Terriers struggled both offensively and defensively against the Eagles. Juniors Sarah Dalton and Stephanie Walker and sophomores McKinley Curro and Traci Landy each scored a goal, but it wasn’t enough as BU fell, 7-4.
The contest against the Eagles was one of the biggest tests for the Terrier goalies this fall season. Senior Jenna Golden and sophomore Rachel Klein each played a half, combining to save just five of BC’s 12 shots, while the offense only scored on four of 10 shots.
“We didn’t play all that great,” said BU coach Liz Robertshaw. “Our attack didn’t do a good job of moving the ball and our defense didn’t take enough chances. We did too much sitting and waiting. We needed to be more aggressive on both sides of the ball. Fortunately for us, we were able to fix all of that in our next two games.”
The Terriers’ next opponent was the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, whom the Terriers simply dominated. UMass didn’t muster a single shot in the first half against Klein but Golden faced four in the second half and saved them all.
Senior Lauren Morton led the way offensively with three goals while senior midfielder Molly Collins led the Terriers’ transition game. Dalton, Curro, Landy, sophomore Xan Weitzel and freshman Corcoran Downey scored a goal apiece in the 8-0 romp. BU greatly improved its shooting percentage from the first game by scoring on eight of 15 shot attempts.
“It was a good rebound,” Robertshaw said. “Our defense played great. They did a good job of communicating with each other and limiting UMass’ scoring chances. It was nice to get a shutout. We also did a good job of getting everyone involved on offense. It was good to see a bunch of different scorers.”
BU’s final opponent was Brown University, and the Terriers dismantled the Bears even more handily than they did the Minutewomen, 12-2. The offense was incredibly efficient, scoring on 12 of its 14 shots. Dalton netted five goals, Landy scored three, while Morton had two.
Golden saved four of the five shots she faced and Klein saved three of four. The defense had another good game, preventing Brown from controlling the ball for any extended period of time.
“Our attack was much better in our last two games than it was in the BC game,” Robertshaw said. “We did a great job of setting up plays in the offensive zone. We want to continue to work on our midfield transitions in practice. That will allow us to score off fast breaks in addition to the set plays we’re already running.
“I also want to work with our defense. We need to slow our opponent’s attack more,” she continued. “We did a good job on defense once they were in our zone, but they got the ball into our zone too easily.”
The Terriers’ next preseason game is Saturday against Dartmouth College at 2:00 p.m.
