For the third consecutive game, the Boston University women’s lacrosse team recorded a loss, as it fell to the University of New Hampshire, 9-8, in overtime Wednesday night in Durham, New Hampshire.
Despite losing by a small margin, the Terriers (6-8, 4-3 Patriot League) were right in the thick of things during a first half that saw both teams exchange goals at will.
UNH (6-8) got the proceedings started quickly when attack Nicole Grote scored just 48 seconds into the game. At the 17:15 mark of the first half, fellow attack Laura McHoul pushed her team towards a 2-0 lead, but BU quickly responded with a strike from junior midfielder Ally Adams.
As the half wore, on both UNH and BU continued to exchange goals, but the Wildcats got the last tally of the stanza by way of senior Kayleigh Hinkle with 2:40 remaining. BU entered the locker room down 4-3 and seeking to get back into the contest.
One thing that contributed to the deficit was the fact that the Terriers typical high-energy approach was absent.
“We did not play well against UNH in any of the hustle categories,” said BU coach Liz Robertshaw. “UNH was a little bit hungrier and it was not a good performance for us in this category. I think this was a real case of the team not being aggressive getting to the ball. We [also] turned the ball over carelessly and you can’t do that against UNH because they are a good team.”
Despite the Terriers’ best intentions, the Wildcats were the ones who took control of the second half. Hinkle and McHoul got back on the scoresheet in rapid succession before five minutes had passed, while midfielder Rachael Nock added a tally of her own to extend UNH’s lead to 7-3.
While the Terriers were taken back by the Wildcats’ energetic and potent start to the second half, they managed to crawl back into the match. Hinkle added one more goal with 8:08 left in the game, but for a majority of the second half, the momentum swayed entirely in favor of the Terriers.
Senior attack Lindsay Weiner, sophomore attack Brynne Yarranton, senior attack Jenna Boarman and junior midfielder Jill Horka all bested Wildcat goalkeeper Kate Clancy to cap off a dramatic comeback. What was once a four-goal deficit was rapidly turned into an 8-8 game and the two teams were set for an overtime period.
However, much like the start of the game, the Wildcats got off to a quick-fire start in the first of two overtime periods. Nock bested sophomore goalkeeper Caroline Meegan a mere 23 seconds into overtime, with her team riding out the rest of the game to secure the 9-8 victory.
With this loss to UNH in the rearview mirror, the Terriers now look forward to traveling to Bucknell University Tuesday for their final Patriot League clash.
While the Terriers boast considerable offensive potential, their victory over Lafayette College on March 28 was the last time BU scored nine or more goals.
BU’s place in the Patriot League Tournament is secure, but a much-improved team-wide approach will be required against Bucknell (2-14, 0-7 Patriot League) to secure a victory.
“That time has come and gone about being positive,” Robertshaw said. “Talent isn’t going to win you the game, working is going to win the game. If we plan on going as far as we want in the postseason, the talent is going to have to show up and that means everybody.”
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.
