The women’s lacrosse team furthered its best season start in recent history this weekend, thumping Central Connecticut State University 21-9 Saturday. The win extended the Bears’ undefeated season to 6-0, and co-captain Bre Hudgins ’14 continued to assert her dominance, scoring a game-high five goals.
Bruno (6-0, 2-0 Ivy) shot ahead early, clinching a 3-0 lead after less than three minutes of play. Hudgins scored first, followed by Janie Gion ’15 and Kerianne Hunt ’17. The Blue Devils got on the board at the three-minute mark, but Hudgins scored her second goal less than a minute later to regain the three-goal lead.
But CCSU (2-4) rallied back and scored three consecutive goals to tie the game 4-4. The draw was quickly broken by Ali Kim ’17, who notched a tally on a helper from Danielle Mastro ’14. Co-captain Grace Healy ’14 followed with a goal of her own as the Bears started to build momentum that they would ride through the second half. Before the first-half buzzer sounded, the Blue Devils notched another goal, but the Bears outpaced them with three — two from Natalie Fox ’17 and one more from Hudgins that gave her a first-half hat trick and brought the score to 9-5 entering intermission.
“CCSU was a really great demonstration of a full-team effort,” Lauren Toy ’16 said. “I think in the beginning we were a little slow to react on defense, but then momentum generated from things we were doing well on offense. And later when the offense got tired, the defense picked them up.”
Bruno outshot the Blue Devils by 11 in the first half and won twice as many draw controls. In the second half, Brown extended these differences, seizing 14 draw controls, while conceding only three and outshooting CCSU by 13.
Mastro kickstarted the second half with her first goal of the game, widening the Bears’ lead to five. She went on to assist Toy on Bruno’s next tally less than 30 seconds later. The Blue Devils responded with three unanswered goals — three of the total four they would score in the half. CCSU’s Amanda Toke completed a hat trick plus one, netting four of her team’s nine total goals.
Healy scored her second goal of the game midway through the second half, and Hudgins quickly followed with her fourth and fifth. Hunt, Healy, Mastro and Toy all scored again before the Blue Devils netted their last goal with one minute and 16 seconds left to play. Despite the clock running continually after Toy’s goal — an effect of a 10-goal margin mercy rule — Bruno managed three goals in the last minute. Carolyn Westphal ’16, Dianne Vitkus ’16 and Sarah Nesi ’16 each added to Brown’s point total, with Westphal scoring her first goal of the season.
Everyone on the the team played an important role in securing the win, Toy said. “We don’t play at a different level just because we’re playing out of conference.”
The drubbing of CCSU contributed to a number of impressive statistics for the Bears. Healy’s hat trick combined with Hudgins’ five goals to lead the team offensively. The two also combined for 13 draw controls — more than half of Brown’s game total 24. Mastro’s three assists and two goals earned her a five-point game — building on her league-best 24 points. Hudgins’ 20 goals on the season also lead the conference.
Not to be outdone by her offensive teammates, goalie Kelly Roddy’s ’15 totals in save percentage and goals-against average lead the Ivy League. This weekend’s Ivy action also makes Brown the only undefeated conference member, tied for first place with perennially dominant Penn. The Bears’ 21 goals, their highest-scoring game this season, push the team’s goal total to 89 on the year, for an average offensive output of almost 15 goals per game. Bruno’s performance earned it last week’s number 20 spot on Lacrosse Magazine’s team rankings.
The latest win only adds to the team’s momentum. “Each game feeds into another. There are ups and downs throughout the games, but knowing our ultimate goal is in the back of our minds always keeps us going,” said Toy. “The ultimate goal is obviously an Ivy League championship.”
The squad travels out west next weekend for a doubleheader at Colorado University (4-4) and University of Denver (4-1). A very competitive Denver squad, which defeated the Buffaloes 15-4 earlier this season, represents Bruno’s toughest non-conference challenge of the season.
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