The University of Redlands women's lacrosse team faced off against the Occidental College Tigers for the third time this season and came away with a crucial 13-6 victory to advance to the final of the 2014 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championship Tournament. The Bulldogs never trailed in Monday's contest, firing off the first score on its initial possession just 34 seconds into the action and never looking back.
Sophomore midfielder Stephanie Garrett (San Diego, CA) grabbed the opening draw control and quickly advanced to the offensive end of the field. She moved behind the goal, where she found junior midfielder Emily Dalrymple (Snohomish, WA) for a bang-bang play that resulted in the Bulldogs' opening netter.
Moments later, the team continued to show off its impressive goal-scoring skills when Garrett converted a sweet pass from freshman midfielder Breanne Rideout (San Diego, CA) for the 2-0 lead.
Although Occidental pulled one back, Redlands fired off three-straight goals to take a 5-1 advantage with 6:28 left in the period. Senior attack player KK McCaslin (Portland, OR) bookended this trio of scores for the Bulldogs.
The teams traded goals through the final five minutes of the first half, with the Maroon and Gray taking a 6-3 lead into the break.
But Redlands refused to let up in the second stanza, holding the Tigers scoreless for nearly 20 minutes while uncorking six unanswered goals. During this stretch, senior midfielder Jacky Craycraft (Trabuco Canyon, CA) provided a pair of assists, while McCaslin capped off her four-goal showing for the night.
In addition, the Bulldog defense stepped up with critical stops, highlighted by freshman goalkeeper Gigja Hollyday's (Aliso Viejo, CA) six second-half saves. She split time with sophomore Izzy Baez (Zionsville, IN), who offered a strong performance in the first frame.
The Maroon and Gray cruised to victory, finishing the night with 11 of 13 goals coming off an assist. Rideout, Craycraft, and Garrett each dished out two or more assists on the night.
After the game, Garrett spoke about the team's win as well as the upcoming match.
Defensively, the team amassed 12 caused turnovers, with multiple players notching two.
Redlands (12-4, 9-2 SCIAC) looks forward to squaring off with top-seeded Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in Saturday's championship game at 11 a.m. in Claremont. Fans may follow the action via live stats and web-streaming.
