BOULDER – The No. 19-ranked Colorado Buffaloes women’s lacrosse team lost Friday’s conference opener to the Stanford Cardinal, 18-12. The game was tied at halftime, but a strong third period from the Cardinal blew the game open and created an insurmountable lead for the Buffs to come back from.
The game was played in the Indoor Practice Facility instead of Kittredge Field due to weather. The loss dropped the Buffs to a 5-3 record on the season and 0-1 in conference play.
“We didn’t execute well,” said head coach Ann Elliott Whidden. “We had a horrible third quarter [and] that’s the difference in the game.”
After a lower-scoring first half filled with physicality and runs by both sides, the game was tied at halftime. Colorado would have been up one goal at the break thanks to a goal from Eve Hritzuk, but it was rescinded due to a dangerous follow-through penalty. Hritzuk and Madeline Pisani both scored two goals apiece in the first two quarters.
Midway through the second quarter, Morgan Pence went down with an injury. She was not able to walk off under her own power and was seen with a heavy wrap around her knee on the sideline. Pence has been in and out of the lineup with injuries all season, as this was her second appearance in eight games. The senior attacker scored 54 points a season ago, so her presence on offense is missed.
“She’s a key player for us,” coach Whidden said.
Coming out of halftime, Stanford was a completely different team. They forced a quick turnover after Colorado won the opening draw and scored a goal off it. They proceeded to win the next five draws and had a 13-6 lead after just over nine minutes of game time. The lead was 15-8 at the end of the quarter, but a late Colorado turnover allowed Stanford to score a goal with six seconds remaining to further expand the lead.
“We just weren't doing the things we're capable of doing,” Whidden said. “And if you don't execute on defense, and you don't execute on offense, and you're not winning the draw that happens at the same time, it's 10-2 [in the period] and you're down by eight.”
The Buffs got a spark in the fourth with three goals in two minutes to cut the deficit to five, the third coming from senior midfielder Ashley Stokes on this goal from in close.
After the Stokes goal, Stanford was called for a yellow card. With a man-advantage opportunity to make the lead four, the Buffs had a free position shot saved and missed another one wide. One minute later, Stanford scored to close the door on any comeback hopes.
Hritzuk finished with three goals on the day, the most for the Buffs. This was her third straight hat trick and fifth this season. Pisani had just two goals, ending her streak of seven straight games with three or more goals to start the year.
For the Cardinal, Aliya Polisky led the way with seven goals. Goalkeeper Lucy Pearson had an outstanding performance and was the best player in the game on either team, saving 14 of the 26 shots she faced.
The Buffs are back in action next Saturday when they travel to Berkeley to face the California Golden Bears (3-5, 0-0 Pac-12). The match starts at 1 p.m. MT and can be watched on the Cal live stream.
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