Editor’s Note: The headline was edited after its initial publication to more accurately represent the outcome of the game.
The women’s lacrosse team fell apart in the fourth quarter, dropping their fourth straight game to the University of Vermont 13-10 to remain winless on the season.
Graduate attackers Kelly Trotta and Kerri Gutenberger each had four goals, with both hat-tricks converted in the first half. Graduate midfielder Ava Vasile and sophomore attacker Jane Trauger tallied four goals for Vermont as well.
Freshman goalie Megan Morris started her second straight game after playing against Oregon last week. She faced 24 shots on goal and saved 11 of them, good for her second straight double-digit save performance.
“I definitely attribute a lot of that to my upperclassmen; there are some great people down on the defensive end like Sophia [Georgopoulos] and Shelby [Hahn] and JP [Juliana Palumbo],” said Morris. “They’re just really good support to help me step in there and just step up and play my part for them.”
Marist (0-4) played host to the Catamounts (5-1) on a rainy Saturday morning battle. In a game that saw the Red Foxes score in double figures for the first time this season, a final 15-minute collapse on both sides of the ball spelled the end for a comeback opportunity.
During warmups, the Foxes wore white t-shirts with an orange ribbon on the front designated for leukemia. The number 20 in that same color glowed on their backs in honor of junior midfielder Jamie McPherson’s battle with the disease. To break down the huddle, the team screamed out “JMac” for everyone to hear.
“She’s just our reason why. When you’re tired, you dig deeper because we do it for her,” said Trotta. “It makes you appreciate every moment out there and makes you want to work harder because you don’t know what’s gonna happen tomorrow.”
Just like she did against the Ducks, Gutenberger started the game off firing. In the first four minutes of action, she was on the board twice: once from the free position and another from a slick dump-off by graduate attacker Olivia Arntsen.
Following her fellow captain, Trotta got herself on the board with two scores of her own. The Catamounts played physical defense, marred by five cards, which saw the Foxes have their first lead after a quarter all season.
Vermont jumped out on the offensive to start the second, scoring two goals to take their first lead of the morning. Trotta reminded both teams of her return, finishing a first-half hat-trick three minutes into the quarter.
Gutenberger was right behind her, converting her hat-trick with a behind-the-back shot that snuck by first-year goalie Anna Rosenberger. The Catamounts did not waver; graduate midfielder Ava Vasile ended the half with a hat-trick of her own as Vermont took an 8-7 lead into the break.
Marist continued their fiery play in the third. The offense was playing like a completely different unit, and the defense locked down any shot attempt. Morris sacrificed her body to keep the Foxes neck-and-neck with the Catamounts; she only allowed one goal to help preserve a tie game at nine heading into the final 15 minutes.
The fourth quarter saw Marist do something they had not done all season: score in double figures. Gutenberger joined Trotta in the four-goal club, but the Catamounts took over. They climbed to a 13-10, scoring three unanswered goals.
“We went into this game knowing Vermont, we had to respect them,” said head coach Keith Detelj. “As we keep pushing our character in the right ways, we can stay with a lot of really high-level teams.”
The defense that looked so stalwart in the first three quarters, fell apart when it mattered most. The Foxes could not get the ball out of the defensive zone, with turnovers being the main culprit.
The women’s lacrosse team remains at home next week for a Friday afternoon matchup with the Hofstra Pride. A team that the Foxes beat last season, they will look to build on this close game in hopes of capturing their first victory. Gametime is set for 1 p.m.
Edited by Ben Leeds and Sam Murphy
Photo by Marist Athletics
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