The sun was shining on Tenney Stadium for the Marist women’s lacrosse home opener against the United States Military Academy, but a strong Army team bested the Red Foxes, as they came away with a 19-9 victory.
The Black Knights got off to an electric start. Junior midfielder Jolie Riedell scored on a free-position shot after a card was assessed to Marist sophomore defender Bella D’Garcia. Riedell buried the shot 39 seconds into the first quarter. Then it was senior attacker Caroline Raymond dodging from the elbow to score for Army. Sophomore midfielder Julia Gorajek face dodged to cage to put Army up 3-0 early.
One of the reasons for Army’s offensive success today is because of their head coach, lacrosse legend Michelle Tumolo, one of the best attackers to come out of Syracuse. She played professionally with Team USA and Athletes Unlimited’s lacrosse league this past summer.
As both teams approached the center of the field for the next draw. Head coach Jess Wilkinson yelled to her offense “do not stop shooting,” as they were getting good looks in front of Army’s net, just coming up a bit too short.
“One of our goals from our last game was to have a more threatening attack, and I think we did that,” Wilkinson said.
After a five-goal showing in the Red Foxes’ last game, junior attacker Kerri Gutenberger added to her season goal total after feeling the pressure from her defender and dodging off it, cutting into Army’s momentum and bringing the game within two.
The Black Knights’ rhythm got messed up after Marist’s defense started to really turn up the pressure. With three seconds left on the shot clock, Army stepped into senior goalkeeper Gaby Orlando’s crease, inciting transition for the Red Foxes. It was sophomore attack Hannah Spease who scored for Marist off of a feed from X by junior attack Olivia Arsten, the first points on the season for both players.
Orlando again picked up a ground ball to start the transition. Once on offense, Gutenberger found the back of the net again to tie the game as the first quarter came to a close.
The second quarter saw army’s offense pick up production again, scoring two unanswered to break the tie. Gutenberger scored again to bring it back into one, but Army would hold off Marist’s offense and score two more to make the score 8-4.
The Black Knights again had the early start after halftime, scoring 40 seconds into the third quarter. It was Gorajek, who completed her hattrick. Riedell scored shortly after her teammate, completing her hattrick, extending their lead to six.
Not giving up yet, Orlando made a spectacular save in tight that led to a Marist transition. She had six saves on the day.
Orlando passed the ball off to senior defender Sheridan DeVito, who then gave it to Spease who reeled it in with a one-handed grab. The offense settles down and Arsten dodges from the elbow to make it 10-5.
Army then scored two straight goals. A fourth for Gorajek, and a second for junior attacker Kathleen Sullivan. The Black Knights extended their lead to seven, and Marist called a time out.
After the Red Foxes took some time to talk, the offense found some of their spark to put some points back on the board. Gutenberger passed the ball to senior midfielder Melissa Bucher who was at the top of the crease to score Marist’s sixth. On their next trip to offense, Gutenberger found Spease and brought it back within five.
As the offense was heating up, Army’s offense was still just as hot. They scored five straight, extending their lead to ten over the Red Foxes as the third quarter ended.
Arnsten scored again at the top of the fourth quarter to breathe some life back into Marist to close the widening gap. The score was now 17-8.
Frustrations were starting to come out, as D’Gracia was issued a yellow card, which put Army on the man advantage, which they capitalized on to extend their dominating lead back to ten.
“We fell too much defensively,” Wilkinson said. “And that is something that against an aggressive team, we are just going to have to try to keep our cool a little bit more.”
A ten-goal lead constitutes that the clock runs freely, with no stoppages. As the clock ran, Army put up one more point, this time from freshman attacker Meghan McLaughlin. It was her first collegiate goal.
After the next draw, Marist’s offense tried to get back on the board off of the fast break, but they were ultimately stuffed by Army sophomore goalie Lacey Bartholomay. A card was assessed late in the game to the Black Knight’s sophomore attacker Marissa Massey for a dangerous play, putting Marist a man-up one last time.
Gutenberger pulled a shooting space with two and a half minutes left to play. As the clock continued to count down, she pulled the ball back out, but the offense could not complete their set and lost the ball after an errant pass. The Black Knights went back on transition and we’re unsuccessful, bringing the ball back down to Marist’s offensive end. Sophomore attacker Maddie Schrader scored with 21 seconds left in the game to make the final score 19-9.
Marist will look to bounce back quickly, as their next game is at home against LIU on Wednesday, March 2 at 4 p.m.
Edited by Bridget Reilly
Photo Credit: Marist Athletics