Enrique Carrasco, Editor

Header Image: GoExplorers

As the semester begins to wind down, so do the seasons of various sports, including the Lacrosse team. The Lacrosse team found themselves traveling to St. Bonaventure, New York to face the Bonnies, then to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to face off against the Duquesne Dukes, all in one weekend.

The Explorers found success against the Bonnies, coming away with a 12-11 win. Graduate student and midfielder Emily Johnston led the team in goals, accounting for a third of the team’s total goals (4), while sophomore midfielder Maddie Henderson led the team in assists with a total of two.

The Explorers were off to a hot start on offense, with Henderson, Johnston, Lola Quigley and senior Kiki Venza all scoring goals within the first quarter, with Henderson acquiring both of her assists during this quarter. On defense, the Explorers were able to hold the Bonnie’s to only a single goal in the first quarter. The Bonnie’s seemed like a completely different team in the second quarter though, outscoring the Explorers 4-1, tying the game at 5-5.

The half time break seemed to benefit the Explorers, as they seemed to come out with the energy  that they were lacking in the second quarter. Venza, graduate attacker Maddie Dachowski, Henderson and Johnston all tallied a goal in this quarter, with Venza achieving an assist. he Bonnie’s came back with a lot of energy in the fourth quarter, though, outscoring the Explorers 5-0. With 4:02 left on the clock, the Explorers were able to score the last three goals of the game, and ultimately rally back for the 12-11 win. This 4-goal game for Johnston marks her fourth hat trick of the season.

The Explorers did not have as much luck in their game against the Dukes though. The Explorers fell to the Dukes 18-9, and fell to 2-4 in conference play in the season.

The Explorers were off to a slow start against the Dukes, with the Dukes scoring the first two goals of the contest. Quigley and Dachowski both answered with a goal of their own, tying the game at 2-2, with the Dukes scoring one last goal before the end of the quarter. The explorers outscored the dukes 3-2 in the second quarter, with Henderson scoring her 19th goal of the season, and Johnston scoring her 32nd goal.

It seemed like the half time break benefited the Dukes this time, though. After a 5-5 half, the Dukes went on a 8-0 run in the first minutes of the third quarter, ultimately outscoring the Explorers 9-3 in the quarter. It seemed like this quarter really got to the Explorers, as they were outshot 16-6. This momentum carried onto the fourth quarter, where the Dukes outscored the Explorers 4-1, ending the game at 18-9.

Once again, Johnston led the team in goals in this game, coming away with three goals in the game, marking her fifth hat trick of the season. Venza led the team in assists this game, coming away with two assists in the game.

The Explorers head onto their next game of the season, taking on the University of Massachusetts for their last home game of the season on April 14 at 1 p.m.