Box Score NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- A dramatic shooting percentage improvement came at just the right time for the Yale women's lacrosse team Wednesday night, as the Bulldogs shot a blistering .550 en route to beating Marist 11-8 at Reese Stadium. Junior attacker Tess McEvoy led the way for the Yale attack with her third hat trick of the season, and sophomore goalie Sydney Marks made 10 saves.
Yale (2-2, 0-0 Ivy League) had shot .295 in its first three games, including a 3-for-18 performance last Saturday in a 13-3 loss at UMass. Those numbers were a distant memory by the end of Wednesday's performance, as the Bulldogs registered their best shooting percentage in a game since shooting .563 in a 9-8 win vs. Brown Apr. 25, 2014.
"We did a lot of fundamental work in the practices since Saturday's game" said Erica LaGrow, Yale's Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of Women's Lacrosse. "We shot a lot. The players took it upon themselves to come out and put in the extra work."
That extra work paid immediate dividends in the form of a 6-0 run to start Wednesday's game. That run included goals from five different players -- two from junior attacker Hope Hanley and one each from McEvoy, sophomore attacker Kiwi Comizio, sophomore midfielder Taryn Gallagher, and freshman midfielder Addie Zinsner. Hanley, McEvoy and senior midfielder Lauren Wackerle had assists.
But Marist (2-2, 0-0 MAAC) would not go away quietly. The Red Foxes had scored 15 goals twice in their first three games, and in one stretch from the 16:16 mark of the first half through the 19:19 mark of the second half Wednesday they outscored the Bulldogs 6-2 to close the gap. Only free position goals by Comizio and McEvoy near the end of the first half broke up the run.
After Marist closed within 8-6 on a goal by midfielder Kara McHugh -- her second in a span of just over 10 minutes, and her 16th of the season -- Yale called timeout. Shortly after that, Zinsner fed Gallagher for a goal that helped put an end to Marist's run. The Bulldogs went on to score three straight -- adding one from sophomore midfielder Madeleine Gramigna assisted by Gallagher, and one from McEvoy on a free position -- to take a commanding 11-6 lead with 4:08 to play.
"We just needed to settle down and get back to what we do well," said LaGrow. "We divide the game into 15-minute quarters so that we can focus on a small amount of time. We made some adjustments. To their credit, Marist ran a great, high-pressure defense. We just had to find the free player in it."
Marist got a pair of late goals by attacker Allison Gionta -- who finished with a team-best three for the game -- but Marks made one last big save with 75 seconds left to end any comeback hopes for the Red Foxes. She got low to deny Gionta, and after the Bulldogs cleared they were able to run out the clock.
"I'm really happy and proud of the way our team competed," said LaGrow. "This was a total team effort, from everybody on the sidelines to all 12 players on the field. Both assistant coaches [Alyssa Murray and Sloane Serpe] put together great game plans and made the necessary adjustments in the middle of the game."
Senior defender Kate Walker led the team with three caused turnovers, and junior defender Victoria Moore led the team with four ground balls. Senior attacker Nicole Daniggelis added 10 draw controls, more than doubling Marist's total (four), as Yale enjoyed a 17-4 edge in draw controls.
Yale is now 9-3 in its last 12 games at Reese Stadium. The Bulldogs travel to Ithaca to open Ivy League play at Cornell Saturday.
Report by Sam Rubin '95 (sam.rubin@yale.edu), Yale Sports Publicity
