NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Yale women's lacrosse team, which has earned a No. 25 spot in the national poll, takes on local rival No. 15 UConn Wednesday afternoon at Reese Stadium (4:00 p.m.,
NESN+,
ESPN+,
Live Stats).
Last Game
Yale (9-2, 5-0 Ivy League) earned a historic 15-9 win at Cornell this past Saturday. The Bulldogs trailed 4-2 early before shutting the Big Red down defensively, allowing just four goals in the final three quarters. Junior attacker
Olivia Penoyer (Manlius, N.Y.) led Yale in points (1-4-5). Three other players had four-point games: first-year midfielder
Taylor Lane (Norwalk, Conn.) (3-1-4), senior attacker
Olivia Markert (Centreville, Va.) (2-2-4) and first-year midfielder
Fallon Vaughn (Concord, Mass.) (4-0-4). First-year goalkeeper
Cami Donadio (Winter Park, Fla.) made six saves on 10 shots.
This was Yale's first win at Cornell since Apr. 24, 2004 and the Bulldogs' first win against the Big Red anywhere since a victory in New Haven on Apr. 21, 2007. The win clinched a spot in the Ivy League Tournament, a first for Yale. It also gives the Bulldogs the first 5-0 Ivy start in school history. Yale is 9-2 overall for the first time since 2002 and has won five in a row within a season for the first time since 2014.
Lane Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week
First-year midfielder
Taylor Lane (Norwalk, Conn.) was named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. Lane did a little bit of everything in last Saturday's 15-9 win at Cornell, including:
- 3 goals (on 4 shots)
- 1 assist
- 4 points
- 2 ground balls
- 3 caused turnovers (led team)
- 9 draw controls (led team)
She was a big part of a Yale defensive effort that limited Cornell to four goals in the final three quarters. A graduate of Greenwich Academy, Lane is in Pierson College at Yale. She was a three-time Under Armour All-American in high school.
A Historically Strong Start
Yale is 9-2 overall for the first time since 2002. The Bulldogs have not started a season 10-2 since 1999, when they made it all the way to 13-2 before suffering their third loss of the season.
Cracking the National Poll
Yale made the national top 25 for the first time this season on Monday, coming in at No. 25 in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA poll. The Bulldogs had been among the teams receiving votes in the poll for four straight weeks (Mar. 21, Mar. 28, Apr. 4, Apr. 11). Their remaining regular season schedule includes three ranked teams: No. 6 Stony Brook, No. 12 Princeton and No. 15 UConn.
RPI and the Ivy League
Yale is the No. 2 Ivy League team in the latest version of the NCAA's
RPI rankings. Princeton is No. 9 in the nation, Yale is No. 19, Penn is No. 37 and Cornell is No. 40. No other Ivy teams are in the top 50.
Home Field Advantage
Yale plays three home games in six days before finishing the regular season at No. 12 Princeton Apr. 30. The Bulldogs are 13-5 (.722) at home since the start of the 2019 season. Yale's last loss at home was Feb. 29, 2020 (11-5 vs. Penn). Here is Yale's home record in each of the past three seasons:
- 2019 5-3
- 2020 2-2
- 2022 6-0
Penoyer Sets Assists Mark
Junior attacker
Olivia Penoyer (Manlius, N.Y.) has 23 assists, a new career high (her previous best was 21 in 2019). She has two or more assists in a game seven times this season, including each of the last four games. She is leading the Ivy League in assists per game (2.09, 18th in the nation).
Markert Nears Goal Mark
Senior attacker
Olivia Markert (Centreville, Va.) leads Yale in goals and points (32-7-39). She is two away from her personal single-season goals record (34, set in 2019). She is tied for second in the Ivy League in goals per game (2.91) and is second in points per game (3.55). She is third in the nation in free position goals per game (1.36).
Scouting UConn
UConn (11-2, 2-1 Big East) has lost just once since Feb. 19 – by one goal (14-13) in overtime at No. 8 Denver Apr. 9. The Huskies have scored at least 15 goals in every game other than that one in that span, a stretch in which they are 10-1. Katie Woods is in her 12th season as head coach, and her staff includes former Yale assistant Kiley Anderson.
