The No. 17 Boston University lacrosse team will take a break from America East conference play when rival Boston College visits Nickerson Field Wednesday evening.
The Terriers (7-6, 3-0) are riding a two-game winning streak with triumphs over conference foes University of New Hampshire and University of Maryland-Baltimore County.
The Eagles (8-4, 1-4) are coming off a heartbreaking 12-11 loss to No. 4 Duke University on April 10. BC let the game slip away after they had held the lead for the majority of the contest. At the end of the first half, the Eagles held an 8-4 lead, and with just over 17 minutes left in the game, they led 9-6. In a span of less than 10 minutes, Duke stormed back with six of the next seven goals to grab the lead. The Blue Devils were able to hold BC scoreless in the final minutes to complete the comeback.
The Atlantic Coast Conference, of which both BC and Duke are a part, is the most talented conference in women’s lacrosse this season. The Eagles’ four conference losses have come against top-tier programs, all of whom will compete for this year’s national championship. In addition to their tight loss to Duke, the Eagles lost a close contest to No. 3 University of Maryland 7-6 but fell to No. 2 University of North Carolina and No. 5 University of Virginia by wide margins.
While all of the Eagles’ losses have come against quality opponents, none of their wins this season have come against an opponent with a winning record. Wednesday’s contest will prove whether BC can beat a non-conference team with a winning record.
As of April 11, the Eagles ranked 21st in the nation in offense, averaging 13.42 goals a game. BC’s offense is based around senior attacker Lauren Costello who has tallied a team-high 35 goals and 30 assists. Costello is also one of the biggest offensive threats in the nation. She ranks second in the nation in points per game, third in points and fourth in assists. In addition, she has scored on a mind-blowing 71.4 percent of her shots.
“We need to slow down their attack,” said BU coach Liz Robertshaw. “I think our defenders are really going to try to stay on [Costello] to put a little bit of pressure on her. Our other defenders also have to do a good job of not allowing her to have people to feed to, and that’s something we’re going to try to do.”
The Eagles’ defense is even more impressive than their offense. BC ranks ninth in the nation in that area, allowing only 8.08 goals per game. Junior goalie Sheila Serafino is having a successful season with a goals-against average of 7.74, good enough for sixth in the nation.
“Attacking-wise, we need all our players to show up,” Robertshaw said. “We need a big game from [senior attackers] Traci [Landy], McKinley [Curro], Xan [Weitzel] and from the rest of our attacking unit. We need multiple people getting on the board.”
BU’s ability to score early and often has been on display in its past two games. In their contest against UNH, the Terriers jumped to a 5-0 lead, and on the road against UMBC, they established a 6-0 lead early. A good start to Wednesday’s contest will help the Terriers continue their winning streak.
One positive aspect to this season as a whole for the Terriers has been their success against top-tier netminders. When BU lost to Dartmouth College on March 31, they scored 10 goals on senior goalie Julie Wadland, who ranks third in the nation with a 6.52 goals-against average.
“Coach Robertshaw has given us the green light,” Landy said. “She said, “Traci, you need to get the ball, and you need to go to the goal.’ We step up to the challenge of facing a good goalie. When we see we are playing a good goalie, we want to prove to them why we are the best shooting team in Division I. I think we always step up when we know it is a good goalie, but we need to step up even when it is not the best goalie.”
As impressive as the team has been against the nation’s best in net, the Terriers know they must now move forward and beat the next goalie and team on their schedule, who just so happens to be their local rival.
“We want to win against Boston College because it is a battle for the best of Boston, and that is something we take pride in,” Robertshaw said. “That is why the game is always a huge competition. It’s the same as ice hockey.”
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