Women’s lacrosse team to host America East tournament

   Perhaps never quite like Saturday has the University at Albany women's lacrosse team had the odds stacked against it in its nine-year tenure in the America East conference.

   The Great Danes (13-2, AE 6-0) had to defeat a team that, like them, was undefeated in the conference. They had to defeat a team that has won the America East five-years running. But most importantly, the Danes had to defeat a team that it hasn't in the two teams' previous 11 games.

   That team is Boston University (9-8, AE 5-1), and on a warm Saturday afternoon, the UAlbany women delivered and defeated the Terriers, 12-11.

   "We're just in a state of euphoria right now," senior Olivia Jarem said. "To the very end it was the hardest battle we've played all year. It was a great way to finish our regular season on such a high note."

   The Danes head into the America East tournament, which it will now host, on three consecutive one-goal wins, but that almost wasn't the case.

   As they had been doing all game, the Terriers battled hard in the final 1:37 of the game following a timeout. Just 12 seconds later Boston U. looked to close the 12-10 gap when the team forced a turnover and threw the ball up field for a 2-on-2 breakaway.

   Boston U. senior Xan Weitzel followed her teammate who had the ball upfield with a defender between them as all three headed right of the net. The UAlbany defender broke for Weitzel's teammate and saw the ball go over her head to Weitzel. Rushing directly toward the middle of the net Weitzel fired a shot from inside the crease to the right side of the net, but Danes senior Ashley Ross got into position and blocked the shot with her stick.

   After a Terrier goal from senior McKinley Curro that reduced the lead to 12-11 with 58.2 seconds remaining, Curro was at it again with 39 seconds left. She aimed another shot at the back of the net, but once again Ross was in the right place to stop it and seal the victory.

   "Honestly, I don't even know," said Ross about her thoughts during the late-game heroics. "I was just looking for the ball and trying to make sure that nothing got in. The last minute-and-a-half was just shot, shot, they scored, and then they got the draw — just a bunch of mismatch plays."

   To say the least UAlbany coach Lindsey Hart was thrilled with her goalie's play.

   "She won the game for us," Hart said. "The team played well enough to put us in a position to win, and Ross won the game for us at the end."

   The Danes, who saw a 5-1 lead reduced to 7-4 at halftime, extended its lead again 3:16 into the second half when junior Nikki Branchini made a break on a pass at midfield to intercept it, passed it to fellow junior Mel Rorie who drew a foul inside the crease while going against two defenders after the breakaway. Rorie's resulting free-position shot found the back of the net and put UAlbany up 8-4.

   The Terriers fought back with three consecutive goals, again reducing the lead — this time to one goal at 8-7. The teams traded one goal each, then UAlbany scored two-in-a-row and Boston U. responded with two more, putting the score at 11-10 with 9:50 on the clock.

   Five minutes and 15 seconds later it was once again Rorie who scored the decisive goal — again on a free-position shot — putting the Danes ahead 12-10 with 4:35 remaining.
   "We had the confidence that we were on our home turf," Jarem said. "We've been undefeated on this turf so far this year. It was just about pride, playing for pride. Their tactic has always been intimidation. [When] you play at Boston they're really loud, and they have that home crowd. So we wanted to counteract that by having our own fans come and put it back in their face."

   UAlbany was led by senior Christine Grueniger who had four points on four goals. Rorie added three more goals, followed by Jarem and freshman Rachael Burek with two each. Sophomore Amanda Pollock closed out the Danes' scoring with one goal.

   The Danes will now hope that their 8-0 record at home will carry on through the America East tournament which will be held at UAlbany's John Fallon Field.

   "They're (UAlbany players) undefeated on their own field this year. It gives them more confidence," Hart said. "They're in their own beds. They're in their own routine, and they're playing in front of their own fans. It's a great experience for them."