March 23, 2012
EVANSTON, Ill. – The 11th-ranked Vanderbilt women’s lacrosse team used a second-half rally to get within one goal of top-ranked Northwestern, but the Wildcats closed the game on a 7-1 run to take a 13-6 American Lacrosse Conference victory Friday at Lakeside Field.
“We fought really hard today,” VU Head Coach Cathy Swezey said. “Our team did a good job executing the game plan.”
In the game’s opening stanza, rain and fog wreaked havoc on the field which overlooks Lake Michigan. Twenty minutes into the game only four goals had been notched, with Northwestern leading 3-1.
The Wildcats (8-0, 1-0 ALC) would tally three goals in three minutes to take a 6-1 lead with five minutes to go in the first half before VU answered in the final minute to cut the halftime deficit to five.
As the weather began to clear, the Commodores (5-3, 0-2 ALC) rallied early in the second half. Goals from seniors Ally Carey and Kendall Pittinger and junior Carly Linthicum brought Vanderbilt to within one goal, 7-6, at the 23:26 mark. But Northwestern would not allow the Commodores to tie the game, instead scoring five consecutive goals–the first four of which came on free position attempts.
More than 18 minutes of the second half elapsed before Vanderbilt was able to score again, with Casey Bakker finding the back of the net to cut NU’s lead to 11-6. The Wildcats scored twice more in the game’s waning minutes.
Pittinger led the Commodores with a pair of goals while Carey had team-highs with three draw controls and two caused turnovers. Junior Casey Bakker led the Commodores with three ground balls.
Junior goalkeeper Chelsea Pasfield earned her first start of the 2012 season and made four saves in the first 45 minutes before giving way to senior Natalie Wills. Wills made four saves in her 15 minutes of action against only three goals.
The Commodores will spend the weekend back in Nashville before heading out on the road again to face New Hampshire on Wednesday, March 28. The opening draw is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. CT.
