NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- A methodical comeback by the Yale women's lacrosse team came up just short Saturday afternoon at Reese Stadium, as the Bulldogs fell 9-8 to No. 17 Penn. After allowing the Quakers five goals in the first 7:02, Yale allowed only four goals in the final 52:58 and eventually rallied to tie the game 6-6 with 16:17 to play on a goal by sophomore midfielder Katie Smith -- her third of the day. Penn, however, broke off a three-goal run to spoil Yale's upset bid.

After falling behind 5-0, Yale (5-9, 2-4 Ivy League) caught a break when Penn attacker Iris Williamson -- the team leader in goals entering the day -- hit the post on a breakaway. That helped jump-start a stretch of 24:39 in which the Bulldogs held the Quakers scoreless.

As part of that effort, Yale wound up holding Williamson to just two shots and no goals for the day. She had been averaging two goals and four shots per game.

"Defense is a team game, and along with [sophomore goalkeeper] Sydney Marks our seven players on defense did a great job today," said Erica LaGrow, Yale's Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of Women's Lacrosse. "They knew the game plan and stuck to it. It took all eight of them to stop a powerful Penn offense."

Yale began chipping away at the lead on a free position goal by Smith at 21:01, and junior attacker Tess McEvoy side armed one in at 14:45. Thanks in part to an interception by Marks on a pass by Penn attacker Nina Corcoran with six minutes left, the Bulldogs went into the half down by only three.

"Penn is a great team and came in with a great game plan," said LaGrow. "We got off-course at the start, but after that we played hard, were competitive on the draws and went to the cage. The defensive momentum carried over into the offensive end. Our assistant coaches, Alyssa Murray and Sloane Serpe, did a great job game-planning and managing the game."

Penn got the first goal of the second half -- one of four tallies on the day for midfielder Alex Condon -- and could have had the second, but Condon hit the pipe at 24:40. Yale then answered with a 4-0 run. Smith scored twice, then sophomore attacker Kiwi Comizio set up junior attacker Hope Hanley for a shot high and inside the post from just outside the crease. Smith capped the run by scoring on a free position shot to tie the game at six.

For Smith, Saturday's game will be remembered as a breakthrough similar to the one her identical twin sister, sophomore midfielder Lily Smith, had earlier this year. Lily notched her first hat trick on Mar. 12, and Katie notched her first on Saturday.

"Katie is very quick and extremely athletic," said LaGrow. "We needed speed on that end. She has been building confidence all year, and had a great week of practice. She's a great player overall and just had to get back into a rhythm after not playing lacrosse since high school [Katie and Lily both played field hockey exclusively last season]."

The Bulldogs had a pair of chances to take the lead, but McEvoy had a free position shot partially blocked, and a turnover ended the next Yale possession. Marks came up with a big save with just under 11 minutes to play, but shortly after that Corcoran hit Condon for a quick-stick goal that gave the lead back to Penn, 7-6 with 10:36 left. The Quakers then scored two more, including another one set up by Corcoran, to go ahead 9-6.

Corcoran now has 47 assists for the season, building on her already impressive school-record and nation-leading total.

"Her feeds are probably the best in the game right now," said LaGrow of Corcoran. "She has people that can catch and finish, and she has the ability to move and pass on the run."

After a timeout the Bulldogs once again rallied, as sophomore midfielder Madeleine Gramigna bounced a free position shot past Penn goalie Britt Brown at 6:53. But after a Yale turnover with 6:30 left, Penn was able to start working the clock down. McEvoy earned a free position attempt on a shot that hit the crossbar with 2:30 to play, but the Quakers swarmed her and blocked the attempt.

Sophomore midfielder Emily Granger drove in for a goal that pulled Yale within 9-8 with 46 seconds remaining, but a turnover by Yale on the draw control gave Penn the chance to run out the clock.

Yale wound up with a 23-16 advantage in shots, a 12-9 advantage in ground balls and a 10-9 edge in draw controls. Junior defender Marisa Cresham came off the bench to contribute four caused turnovers -- more than the rest of the players on both teams combined -- and had three ground balls.

"Marisa has a great game -- a tremendous lacrosse IQ, especially on the defensive end," said LaGrow. "I'm really proud of how she played."

With the win, Penn (11-3, 5-1 Ivy League) keeps pace with No. 20 Cornell and No. 10 Princeton atop the Ivy League standings. A win at Cornell next weekend would guarantee the Quakers at least a share of their ninth Ivy League title in the last 10 years.

Yale hosts Harvard next Saturday and sits just one game behind the Crimson for the fourth and final Ivy League Tournament spot.

Report by Sam Rubin '95 (sam.rubin@yale.edu), Yale Sports Publicity