Freshman Caroline Chesterman scored a goal with 2:56 left in the game to pull Florida within two, but No. 5 Georgetown held on to beat the Gators 13-11 Tuesday night in women’s college lacrosse action at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
Georgetown (2-1) stormed out to a 10-5 lead at halftime, but Florida (3-2) rallied behind a strong defensive effort and timely scoring. Jordy Kirr put the Hoyas up 11-5 with the first goal of the second half, but Brittany Dashiell and Sam Farrell sparked a scoring run for the Gators, netting back-to-back goals to start the rally.
Freshman attacker Ashley Bruns connected with Julie Schindel, who redirected the ball past Hoya goalie Caitlin Formby to pull within three goals. Farrell then fired a shot from long distance that bounced past Formby to make it 11-9 with 16:51 remaining in the game.
Georgetown responded with goals from Jacqueline Giles and Erin Lovett to pull ahead by four and seemingly end Florida’s hopes. But the young Gator team had one more rally in them, as Chesterman scored off an assist from Bruns to make it 13-10. Chesterman then took advantage of a free position shot to pull within two at 13-11.
The Gators last chance came with a minute and a half to play, but an errant pass was picked up by the Hoyas, who were able to run out the clock and hold on for the win.
“In the second half we played fantastic defensively,” said head coach Amanda O’Leary. “Offensively we had numerous opportunities – we just have to do a better job shooting.”
The first half saw Georgetown take a five-goal lead after senior All-American Molly Ford scored five times and notched one assist. In the second half, Ford was held scoreless by a stingy defense led by freshmen Emily Dohony, Haydon Judge and Jamie Reeg. Florida goalie Cara Canington also came through in the net, making nine saves on 33 shots.
“Cara played very, very well. She really stepped up,” said O’Leary. “We’re still learning personnel, learning who plays well together. It’s a learning experience, for the players as well as the coaches. I thought the group that played in the second half defensively did a fantastic job.”
Chesterman led the Gators with three goals. Farrell, Colby Rhea and Schindel each scored twice and Bruns and Dashiell had one goal apiece. Dashiell also had six draw controls.
Not much separated the two teams on the box score, as each finished with 33 shots and 11 ground balls. Georgetown had 14 draw controls to Florida’s 12, but the Hoyas committed 24 fouls to the Gators’ 16.
Florida will open play in the American Lacrosse Conference Saturday when it travels to Baltimore to face Johns Hopkins. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.