Bulldog Women's Lacrosse Cruises to 17-7 Win over Whittier

Photo credit: Sam Keary
Photo credit: Sam Keary

For the seventh time in eight games, the University of Redlands women's lacrosse team scored at least 17 goals, with Saturday night's performance propelling the Bulldogs to an important 17-7 win over Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opponent, Whittier College, on Farquhar Field.

Redlands came out firing and quickly created a 5-0 lead four minutes into the contest. Junior midfielder Sadie Pickering (Tacoma, WA) found first-year attacker Maddie Bush (Ladera Ranch, CA) to initiate the offensive onslaught before going to goal herself 34 seconds later.  In addition to hauling in three of the first five draws, senior midfielder Hanna Morford (West Linn, OR) uncorked two goals during this opening scoring spree, while first-year midfielder Ashley Rende (Mission Viejo, CA) unleashed a sweet netter as well.

The Bulldogs continued to press offensively and built a 13-0 advantage by the 8:22-mark of the first. First-year midfielder Maeve Wiencek (Sherwood, OR) notched what would serve as the game-winner off first-year attacker Joren Fettig's (Bend, OR) assist midway through the frame before Fettig went on to score back-to-back goals over the next two minutes.  Sophomore attacker Paige Erlanger (Las Vegas, NV) dished out the assist on Fettig's second netter and later found senior attacker Adi Fellows (Albuquerque, NM) for a sweet combination to cap off the lucrative performance by the Bulldogs.

Although Whittier scored three times by the end of the first half, Redlands remained comfortably in control for the 10-goal win.

The second half saw Pickering deliver an assist and a goal in succession, as senior defender Alexis Pound (Washington, DC) provided a dime of a pass on Morford's fifth netter of the game.

First-year goalkeepers Annie Van Norstrand (Littleton, CO) and Kallie Collett (Manhattan Beach, CA) split time in the cage and combined for five saves.  The Bulldog defense limited the Poets' chance to score, with Pound, first-year Kaitlyn Lesko (Dacula, GA), junior Emma Brown Thunder (Falcon Heights, MN), junior Abby Filsinger (Verona, WI) and various others, stepping up with persistence and skill.

Beyond her game-high five goals, Morford hauled in seven of Redlands' 13 draw controls. Fettig supplied two goals, one assist, two draw controls, one ground ball, and one caused turnover in a well-rounded effort.   

Redlands (7-4, 1-4 SCIAC) heads to Pomona-Pitzer Colleges on Saturday, April 6, for a 7 p.m. conference tilt.