The University of Redlands women's lacrosse team defeated Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) competitor Whittier College 21-10 en route to 22nd-year Head Coach Suzette Soboti's 200th career win at Redlands. Soboti has been with the program since its inception in 1999.
Despite a start that put the Bulldogs in a 1-5 hole just over 10 minutes into the game, the Maroon and Gray bounced back with an offensive flurry of 14 unanswered goals. Leading the charge during the run, sophomore midfielder Maeve Wiencek (Sherwood, OR) scored three goals, while sophomore attacker Maddie Bush (Ladera Ranch, CA) tallied three assists.
It started with a free-position shot from Wiencek with six and a half minutes to go, which closed the gap to three. Almost four minutes later, she lined up another successful free-position to knot the game at 5-apiece. After a forced turnover by junior defender Elise Avery (Truckee, CA), sophomore midfielder Sydney Louie (Lafayette, CA) slashed past her mark for the score to help the Bulldogs take their first lead of the game at 6-5 with 10:11 left to go.
In a six and a half minute span down the stretch of the first half, Bush shouldered the load with two goals and two assists to help the Bulldogs head into halftime with an 11-5 lead.
Their momentum withstood the break with a solo score coming from Wiencek to get things going within the first three minutes of the half. To culminate an exciting 14-0 surge, sophomore midfielder Alison Waddles (Long Beach, CA) maneuvered her way past multiple defenders to find the back of the net and help give the Bulldogs a 15-5 advantage with 18:16 remaining in the game.
The Poets readjusted and scored three goals over the next six minutes, but the Maroon and Gray went back up by double digits when sophomore midfielder Erika Lopez (Los Angeles, CA) sprinted down the field to score in less than 20 seconds to make it 18-8 with just over six minutes remaining in the game.
Although the Poets notched a pair of quick goals in the final five minutes, the Bulldogs closed the game out on a 3-0 run to cement a 21-10 win and Coach Soboti's 200th career victory.
For the game, Wiencek led with a career-high five goals and dished out two assists. Lopez also fueled the offense with her career-best of four goals, as sophomore midfielder Joren Fettig (Bend, OR) matched a game-high seven draw controls. Sophomore defender Kaitlyn Lesko (Dacula, GA) and Avery led a strong defensive effort with two caused turnovers each, while junior attacker Bre Gunderson (San Diego, CA) and Louis tallied three ground balls.
Redlands (2-1, 2-1 SCIAC) hits the road for a conference showdown against Chapman University on Saturday, February 29, at 11:30 a.m.
