While the rest of the student body was enjoying a week off from classes, the Boston University women’s lacrosse team was hard at work, splitting decisions with American University and No. 20 Johns Hopkins University.
BU (2-4, 1-0 Patriot League) kicked off its conference slate with a bang Tuesday, earning a 14-4 victory over the Eagles (3-6, 0-1 Patriot League), and dropped a 13-12 nail-biter Saturday against the Blue Jays (5-3).
While BU head coach Liz Robertshaw said it was tough to not best Johns Hopkins, her team’s performance against American set a positive tone for what lies ahead. Through leadership from the likes of senior midfielders Ally Adams, Jill Horka and Remy Nolan, BU is set on proving it can be among the Patriot League’s best.
“That’s the biggest thing,” Robertshaw said. “We want to make sure we send that message externally to other teams in the league, but also to ourselves, that we can compete. A goal for us is to be in that championship game and to try and snag that title away from Loyola [University Maryland], who’s had it the last couple years. We want to show we’re right there in the mix and are going to continue to get better and compete for that championship.”
The championship match Robertshaw referenced is far off, but the victory over American sets a good omen. The star of the day was junior goalkeeper Caroline Meegan, who played in her first contest since the season opener. She recorded 14 saves and kept the Eagles to a 0-for-6 mark from free position opportunities.
On the offensive end, sophomore attack Mickenzie Larivee, sophomore midfielder Sarah Anderson and Horka combined for seven goals, while Adams and junior attack Taylor Hardison each chipped in a pair of helpers. Although American grabbed the first two goals of the contest, BU enjoyed 8-0 and 6-0 runs at various points.
“The team definitely wanted to come out and make a statement against American that we’re ready for conference play and we’re going to go after every team on our schedule,” Robertshaw said “… I thought the team did a really good job of getting on a run, getting a lead and keeping it and not letting American come back into the game. That was really impressive.”
Riding high after Tuesday’s win, the Terriers encountered a resolute Johns Hopkins side and were right in the contest until the final whistle. They trailed 7-6 at halftime and were tied at 12 apiece until 5:07 remained in the contest.
Nonetheless, the midfield group of Shannon Fitzgerald, Dene’ DiMartino and Haley Schweizer, as well as attack Emily Kenul, proved too much, as they combined for 10 goals. While the result was close, Robertshaw said it was discouraging to not emerge victorious.
“It’s disappointing in a lot of ways to not come out with the W on that,” Robertshaw said. “I was so proud of the way the girls played — I mean, we battled for 60 minutes. There were ebbs and flows to the game, and I just felt this team never quit.”
After splitting results over spring break, Robertshaw took time to highlight the consistent play of Larivee. Larivee scored 11 goals in her freshman campaign but currently has a team-leading 15 goals with nearly a full slate of Patriot League games remaining.
“Everything from the time I started recruiting her at a young age through the time she came to BU, she’s becoming the player I’ve expected her to be,” Robertshaw said. “She’s potentially one of the best players to play here if she works hard and demands the ball and finds her voice … We want her to really continue to step up and be a force.”
Looking ahead, BU will return to Nickerson Field Saturday to play Bucknell University but hasn’t hosted a contest since Feb. 12. Crucial conference points will be on the line then and in the coming weeks, and Robertshaw hopes her team will use its experiences against Johns Hopkins and American to steadily improve.
“There are no breaks and a lot of other students were at the beach or taking some time off, and we’ve been working them pretty hard,” Robertshaw said. “It shows we are getting better, but there’s still work to do as we head back into conference play.”
Jonathan's a New Englander who writes about sports, features and politics. He currently covers men's hockey at BU, worked as Sports Editor during the spring 2016 semester and is on the FreeP's Board of Directors. Toss him a follow on Twitter at @jonathansigal.
