The Bowdoin Women's Lacrosse Team has been tearing up the turf along the East Coast this season, kicking off its year with an impressive 6-1 record.
The first game of the season, played in Brunswick against New England College, was a 14-4 wipeout and served as a good warm-up for the Polar Bears.
"We have a very young team," explained captain Shoshana Kuriloff '04. "Almost half of the girls are rookies. Usually that could make it difficult to mesh as a team, but everyone has stepped it up to generate our winning record thus far."
The Polar Bears traveled to Florida during Spring Break, where they found their first and only loss against Hamilton College. The game was decided in the last 13 seconds, when Hamilton scored to solidify their 8-7 victory. Bowdoin bounced right back after its loss, however, and the team has not looked back since.
In the midst of a five-game winning streak, the Bears knocked off Wellesley College and Eastern Connecticut University in Florida, then the University of Southern Maine, Connecticut College, and most recently, Tufts, back in Brunswick.
Usually a formidable opponent, Connecticut College proved less competitive than in past seasons; the Polar Bears beat the Camels 16-4. Senior captain Hilary Abrams and first year Jill Steigerwald led the scoring with a hat trick each, followed by numerous other team members pocketing multiple goals. Taylor White '07, Angela King '04, Colleen McDonald '05, Genevieve Leslie '07, Taryn King '07, and Brooke Nentwig '06 all got on the board, and the Bears sent the Camels south with a new loss on their record.
Bowdoin's most recent opponent, Tufts, gave Bowdoin a run for its money during Tuesday's game. The Bears were up 4-1 at the half, but the Jumbos were able to eliminate that lead towards the end of the game. With just seconds left, the teams were tied at 7-7. The Polar Bears then capitalized on a Tufts foul, and White scored the game-winner with two seconds to go.
Kuriloff is already impressed with her team. "Considering the large number of new players, we have meshed extremely well thus far," she said. "Everyone is working their hardest, and the results are evident on the field. We are really excited for the rest of the season."
The team takes on Wesleyan tomorrow away at 2:00 p.m. and Williams away on Sunday at 12:00 p.m.