The University of Redlands women's lacrosse team took on No. 15 St. John Fisher College (NY) in a non-conference showdown on Farquhar Field but struggled to find the back of the net in the second half, resulting in the 7-12 loss to the Cardinals on Saturday morning.
Redlands came out firing and quickly took a 3-1 lead less than eight minutes into the game. Junior midfielder KK McCaslin (Portland, OR) unleashed an early-game hat trick for the Bulldogs, with freshman midfielder Stephanie Garrett (San Diego, CA) and junior midfielder Jacky Craycraft (Trabuco Canyon, CA) providing assists on two of her goals.
After junior attack player Emily Bryerton (Liverpool, NY) cut the Cardinals' deficit to one, the Maroon and Gray rattled off back-to-back scores to earn its biggest advantage of the game at 5-2. Craycraft converted a free-position shot, while senior attack player Aimee Dewan (Alamo, CA) made the most of senior midfielder Crystal Painter's (Lake George, NY) pass into the circle.
Beginning at the 16:43-mark, St. John Fisher managed to posses the ball for the better part of 10 minutes while working it around for three consecutive netters to make it 5-5.
Following a Bulldog timeout, Redlands' Craycraft forced a turnover to regain the ball. Moments later, the Maroon and Gray gained another McCaslin goal, with Painter providing the assist, for the 6-5 lead.
However, the Cardinals' plan of possessing and controlling the pace of play was successful in the second half, leading to just one Maroon and Gray goal in the final 30 minutes.
Trailing 6-9 with 8:29 left in the game, Redlands' junior defender Allison Leipzig (Newton, MA) forced a turnover on the opponents, which eventually resulted in a free-position goal by freshman midfielder Ellen Holt (Portland, OR).
Down by just two goals, the Bulldogs' final scoring opportunities came up empty, as St. John Fisher continued its methodical style of play. In addition, the Cardinals tacked on three more scores by the end of the stanza, resulting in the 12-7 tally.
McCaslin led the Bulldogs with four goals, while Craycraft, Dewan and Holt each had one.
Bryerton and senior midfielder Melissa Leonhard (Penfield, NY) provided four goals apiece for the Cardinals.
St. John Fisher won the draw-control battle with a 15-6 advantage, with Leonhard grabbing 11 of them. For Redlands, Craycraft and Garrett split the Maroon and Gray's draw controls with three apiece.
Graduate student goalkeeper Ana Martinez (Pleasanton, CA) made six saves in a complete-game effort for the Bulldogs.
After St. John Fisher's junior goalkeeper Caroline Trpcevski (Manlius, NY) gave up five goals in the first 13 minutes, senior Molly Naylon (Rochester, NY) took over the goalkeeping duties and finished with three saves.
Redlands (7-3) looks forward to a short break in competition before welcoming Fredonia State University (NY) to Farquhar Field on Fri., March 22, for another non-conference bout at 7 p.m.