Written by Jack Bush-Joseph
Over Block Break, the women’s lacrosse team traveled to Oregon looking to continue a strong winning streak. The team has been steadily improving as the season has gone on with spectacular play from many of the players.
The first game of the three-legged trip was against Pacific University. The Tigers won 20-9, battling both their opponents and the elements, as steady rain fell throughout the game. Sophomore Steph Kelly recorded career-highs of five goals and eight points, as well as a season-high of 15 draw controls. The Tigers maintained a strong lead throughout the game with the closest score being 6-3 before CC responded by scoring the next six goals to end the first half at a very comfortable 12-3. The Tigers won 24 of 31 draws and outshot the Boxers 34-16.
“We knew that the games would be a chance to work on some of our technical offense and defense, but out team chemistry was really clicking over the weekend which was great,” said Kelly.
The women did not have long to celebrate, as they had to get ready for their second game of the day against Linfield College. The back-to-back game scheduling was a challenge, but despite the fast turnaround, the Tigers still came out hungry to face the Wildcats.
Highlights of the game revolved around the fantastic performances of sophomore attacker Annie DeFrino and junior midfielder Mary Taussig. Taussig scored three goals and became the 11th Tiger to score 100 or more career goals. DeFrino hit a career high of seven goals and nine points as the Tiger offense continued to fire on all cylinders. The Tigers dominated the overall pace of the game, massively outshooting the Wildcats 46-6, winning 18 of 25 draws, and boasting a 25-9 difference in ground balls. CC crushed Linfield with a final score of 22-2.
The final game of the trip was against George Fox University. It was no walk in the park for the Tigers, who had to deal with some particularly difficult referees. The game was intense right from the starting whistle, and there was no clear lead until the last couple minutes of the first half when the Tigers went on an 8-1 run to go up 12-5 at the break. A critical dynamic of the game was senior goaltender Martha Smith’s fantastic performance. Smith made some key saves including a one-on-one on the crease, which resulted in a serious momentum shift.
“It almost felt like we were facing two opponents, the other team and the referees,” said Smith, “but it was really great to see us react and adjust well even though we weren’t getting help from the officials.”
Despite the difficulty and resistance from the referees, including losing Kelly to the first two yellow cards of her career, the Tigers managed to pull out a strong 21-9 victory and wrap up a successful Block Break trip to Oregon. Kelly also had an impressive trip individually, reaching 30 assists and setting a new single season record.
The team has a short break until they play Concordia University (Wis.) and Augustana College at the end of April. The team currently sits with an impressive official record of 11-2 and looks to continue their six-game winning streak as they gear up for their postseason run.