Catholic University Advances to Finals with Win over Drew
Team celebrates their victory and looks forward to Scranton on Saturday, May 4.
Image courtesy of Catholic University Athletic Department
By Neil Kavanaugh
The Catholic University women’s lacrosse team hosted Drew University this past Wednesday, May 1 on Carlini Field for the Landmark semifinals, defeating Drew 13-7. The Birds finished the regular season with a 13-4 record and the first seed heading into the playoffs. The ladies also went 7-0 in league games to post their sixth straight unbeaten league record. That is a 38 game win streak.
The Cards opened the scoring with a goal from junior middle Julia Clementi, just two minutes into the game. Drew would answer with a goal of its own just three minutes later to tie the score at 1-1. This would be the only time during the game where the score would be close.
Catholic University went on to score ten unanswered goals, which were thanks to junior middle Ally Criscuolo, who scored four times. Freshman middle Molly Monaghan, senior middle Jess Lyons, Clementi, and sophomore middle Anna Maupin also contributed to massive lead that the Cards built.
“The semi finals win against Drew was a great win,” said Criscuolo. “But, I believe this is just the beginning of what the near future has in store for women’s lacrosse. This team has so much potential to achieve great things.”
Criscuolo also stated that for the team prepare for the finals, they are going to continue to be aggressive and aim to work harder than our opponent.
Drew finally got another point on the scoresheet at 21:41 in the second half. Drew would score two more times, just three minutes after to chip away at the Birds’ lead and bring the score to 11-4. This rally from Drew did not last long, as senior middle Katie Sherry found the back of the net just under halfway through the second half. Criscuolo would score her 45th goal of the season to make the score a staggering 13-4 with 14:14 left to play. Though Drew University tried, they could not overcome the massive deficit that the Birds had built up. Drew scored three times before the game ended, bringing the final score to 13-7 Catholic University.
The Cardinal student athletes will prepare for their finals while getting ready for their championship game. The semester and the season is coming to an end, and the players have to take measures to prepare for both.
“To prepare for finals, I really have to manage my time well,” said junior attack Holly Reagan. “I always make a checklist for the last 2 weeks of school of what I need to do everyday in order to get papers and studying done on time.”
Reagan reflected on the ways that having lacrosse has helped her take a break from the stressful week and to have fun, taking her mind off of the upcoming tests.
The ladies advance to host Scranton University this Saturday, May 4 with the first face-off at noon. This win marks the sixth straight time that the Catholic University women’s lacrosse team has made it to the finals, the past five having won the title.
