The Bowdoin Women's Lacrosse Team came out firing on its home turf to beat Wheaton College (0-5) Tuesday night under the lights in an 18-7 win.
The Bears were able to score five goals before Wheaton got on the board. They were led by junior Bridget Keating's four goals in the first half. Senior tri-captains Kate Donoghue and Taylor White scored two goals each before the half. Senior tri-captain Jill Steigerwald and junior Bobbi Dennison notched one apiece as the Polar Bears went ahead 11-3.
Responding to Bowdoin's stellar start, fan Katie Cummings '07 exclaimed between halves, "We're absolutely overwhelming them!"
In the second half the Polar Bears stayed strong and took advantage of offensive production by sophomores Libby Barton, Emily Straus, and Christina Denitzio, as well as first-year Kauri Ballard. Against Wheaton, Bowdoin's high-scoring offense was the key to the game.
"Our offense was on because we regrouped quickly and found our momentum on the attacking end of the field," said Straus. "We played as a unit, and our transition game helped our attackers find the back of the net."
Bowdoin outshot Wheaton 43-23, but sophomore Stephanie Collins-Finn and junior Kat Popoff split time making saves in the net for the win.
The midweek game was an opportunity for the Polar Bears to bounce back from the weekend, when they fell to Middlebury in Brunswick, 11-5. The Polar Bears could not stop the Panthers from a second-half offensive flurry.
"Although the loss to Middlebury this past Saturday was disappointing, we have always valued learning something from each game we play, improving on it, and using it to defeat our next opponent," Donoghue said. "The most unique and important quality this team possesses is unity. We do not compete as individuals, but rather we work as hard as we possibly can everyday to push the collective group to a higher level of play as we take on our opponents game by game."
The teams stayed close before the half as Dennison scored two of Bowdoin's four first-period goals, but they could not find the back of the net in the second half. Middlebury's defense held Bowdoin scoreless until White was able to score with just more than two minutes left in the game. The Panther offense was able to score six second-half goals. Bowdoin's Collins-Finn made 15 saves in the game.
Over the break, the team traveled to Florida for spring training and came away with two wins. The Bears' only loss came against a nationally ranked Gettysburg team as they fell 8-6 in a battle to the end.
"The game was an excellent display of athleticism and skill by both teams as there was a one- or two-goal difference and hard play up and down the field throughout the entire 60 minutes," said Donoghue. "We played extremely well, fought hard, and look forward to meeting the Bullets again the future."
The Polar Bears were superb against Hamilton and Springfield College in Wellington, Florida. They posted an 8-7 come-from-behind win against Hamilton before soundly beating Springfield 16-3. An 18-8 win against Connecticut College was a great season-opener before leaving for their trip, as eight Bowdoin players scored in the win.
Now 4-2 and ranked seventh in the latest national poll, the Polar Bears will look to win on the road against Wesleyan on Saturday. They will then return to Bowdoin for a Sunday match against Plymouth State.
"This year the theme our coach gave us for the season is 'onward and upward' and I think tonight's game proved we are capable of moving forward and continuing to improve and synthesize aspects of our game all over the field," White said. "We really began to work as a cohesive unit--?in addition to playing well individually?and we are really looking forward to continuing our progress this coming Saturday."