The University of Redlands women's lacrosse team wrapped up a chilly trip to Ohio by taking on Capital University in Columbus on Saturday morning.  Despite a late scoring surge, the Bulldogs struggled to overcome an early deficit and ultimately fell to the Crusaders by a score of 7-13.

Capital charged out to a quick 5-0 lead with efficient scoring and stifling defense.  The Bulldogs mustered two goals in the first half to make it a manageable 2-8 game at the midway point.  Sophomore attacker Sadie Pickering (Tacoma, WA) had her hand in both of these scores, providing the assist on first-year Isabella Leonardi's (Napa, CA) goal and then finding the back of the net herself less than three minutes later.

The teams traded scores to start the second half, with senior midfielder Lacey Bjorndal (Sherwood, OR) firing one past the Capital goalkeeper on a player-up advantage at the 21:49-mark.

Trailing 3-9, the Bulldogs faced a tough challenge to overcome the deficit with time running out.  Unfortunately, a Crusader scoring spurt appeared to put the game out of reach for the Maroon and Gray.

However, Redlands refused to go away and managed to close out the game with a 4-1 run.  First-year attacker Paige Erlanger (Las Vegas, NV) converted a goal before Pickering uncorked a hat-trick in the final 3:17.

Overall, Redlands won the draw-control battle with a 13-9 margin, as Bjorndal continued to take the lion's share with nine of them.  She also stepped up by causing four opponent turnovers in a relentless effort.  Senior defender Katie Koehler (Jackson, WY) added two of her own as well.

Redlands (2-3) returns home to the friendly confines of Farquhar Field on Wednesday, March 7, for a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCAIC) showdown against the Sagehens of Pomona-Pitzer Colleges.  First draw is set for 7 p.m.