HARTFORD, Conn. -- Trinity goalkeeper Gabriella Young stopped a late three-on-one opportunity for the Bates women's lacrosse team with her 10th save of the afternoon and the No. 16 nationally ranked Bantams edged the Bobcats 12-11 Saturday in NESCAC action.
The Bantams (2-1, 2-0 NESCAC) took the lead for good with 4:49 left in regulation on a goal from Katrina Angelucci, her team-high fourth of the night. But the Bobcats (1-3, 0-2 NESCAC) had a chance to tally the equalizer late when junior Margaret Smith (Wilton, Conn.) caused a turnover and Bates pushed the ball down the field on a three-on-one break. Smith got the ball on the doorstep but Young denied the shot and Trinity was able to run out the clock.
Bates led 5-4 at halftime and took its biggest lead of the game at 7-4 thanks to a Smith goal on an assist from sophomore Jordyn Tveter (Topsfield, Mass.) with 28:30 left in regulation.
But the Bantams answered with goals from Lily Ives and Sydney Bell, trimming the Bobcat edge to 7-6 with 22:44 remaining. Smith put the lead back at two before the Bantams scored two more goals, tying the game at eight with 15:05 to go.
Junior Summer Dias (West Newton, Mass.) briefly put the Bobcats back on top at 9-8 with 13:40 on the clock. Then the Bantams went on a 3-0 run, going up 11-9 on a Kendall Milligan goal with 10:08 remaining.
The Bobcats refused to back down, as Smith connected with senior captain Avery MacMullen (New Haven, Conn.) for a goal and Tveter took advantage of a player-up opportunity, tallying her second goal of the afternoon and tying the game at 11 with 6:55 left in the contest.
But Angelucci's goal less than two minutes later proved to be the game-winner.
Smith finished with four goals and two assists for Bates. Tveter added a pair of goals and a pair of assists. Dias also found the back of the net twice.
Senior captain Liv Sandford (Kennebunk, Maine) secured a game-high six draw controls. And junior Caitie Clark (Rumson, N.J.) impressed with four ground balls and four caused turnovers.
The statistics were neck-and-neck across the board, with Bates tallying 27 shots to Trinity's 26. The Bobcats won 14 draw controls and the Bantams won 11. Bates also recorded 14 ground balls to Trinity's 13. Both teams were perfect with their clear attempts and the Bantams turned the ball over three more times than the Bobcats.
The Bobcats look to bounce back Tuesday when they host the University of Southern Maine at 4:30pm.
