After outlasting Vermont for an overtime victory Friday, Oregon was on the wrong end of a double-overtime decision two days later against New Hampshire.
The pair of close finishes were a fitting way for the women’s lacrosse team to end its regular season, as yesterday’s 13-12 loss to the Wildcats was the team’s ninth game decided by one goal.
“I know (Head coach) Jen (Larsen) said she was very proud of how we played,” junior Ilsa van den Berg said. “It stung majorly because we were so close … we know we should have won.”
Oregon (11-6 overall) found a way to win Friday in Burlington, Vt., 12-11, despite the Catamounts’ statistical advantages in shots, ground balls and turnovers by outscoring the hosts 7-4 in the second half and overtime. Part of that scoring surge came from senior attacker Theresa Waldron, who recorded all of her assists and all but one goal in the second half.
Friday’s first half was a game of anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better between Oregon and Vermont, who went on respective four- and five-goal runs before ending the half with a 7-5 Vermont advantage. Seniors Waldron, Jen May, Jana Bradley and Jenny Browne all scored in the first 30 minutes, with May scoring twice.
Barely a minute in to the second half, junior Casey Rector sparked three consecutive Oregon goals on an assist by Waldron.
Vermont’s Alicia Hawks scored with fewer than seven minutes left in the half to push the advantage to one, before van den Berg, Oregon’s leading scorer on the season, tied the game on a Browne-assisted goal with 5:40 left.
Senior Cara Mead’s unassisted goal with 1:05 left in overtime ended the game, which leaves the Ducks one game away from tying their program record for wins.
Multi-goal spurts were few and far between during Sunday’s 13-12 double-overtime loss to New Hampshire, a game that featured 11 ties and five lead changes. Neither team led by more than two goals during the contest.
Oregon saw familiar faces leading the score sheet in the losing effort, with van den Berg scoring seven points (four goals, three assists) and Waldron five (two goals, three assists). The duo combined for Oregon’s final three goals, the first two of which put the Ducks ahead by one goal with six minutes to play. In lacrosse, the first overtime period is divided into two six-minute halves before advancing to a “sudden victory” double overtime period of three minutes. Van den Berg scored in the first half of the first overtime, but New Hampshire would go on to score the final two of the match, including the game winner with seven seconds remaining in double overtime.
The 23 turnovers Oregon committed kept the Ducks from winning, van den Berg said.
“If we play like that in the conference games, we won’t be very successful,” she said.
Oregon players have talked about playing a full 60 minute game all season, and van den Berg said she thought their game against New Hampshire came close to their goal.
“The first half is where we lack usually, but I think we made our presence known, but there were definitely parts where we lost it, so I don’t think the full 60 minutes was there,” van den Berg said.
Jenny Browne added three goals and an assist for the Ducks, while both Jen May and freshman Alex Breiner had an assist and a goal.
The Ducks will open the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament next Wednesday in Berkeley, Calif.
[email protected]