Bolstered by Blast from Past, J-Maddy Advances
by Clare Lochary | Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff | Game Blog
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Kim Griffin notched an assist Saturday in fifth-seeded James Madison's 9-8 win over Stanford. The Dukes host Syracuse next week in the NCAA quarterfinals. |
HARRISONBURG, Va. -- Rallying from a halftime deficit, No. 5 seed James Madison (17-2) used lock-down defense to eek out a 9-8 win over the Stanford in the first round of the NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament.
Senior goalie Morgan Kelly anchored the team with 10 saves,
including seven in the second half, limiting the Cardinal to
a single goal after the break.
"In a tight situation, I'm going to choose my defense winning that
game," said Dukes head coach Shelley Klaes-Bawcombe, who is now 5-0
in one-goal games this season. James Madison will host Syracuse
next Saturday in the NCAA quarterfinals.
Stanford had a chance to force overtime when senior Karin
Nesbitt picked off Mary Kate Lomady's pass with 22 seconds left and
got the ball to Sarah Flynn (1g, 1a) for a final shot. But under
defensive pressure, Flynn's shot went wide, sending the Cardinal
home for the season and the Dukes into a quarterfinal game versus
Syracuse.
Stanford jumped out to an early 2-0 start with a pair of goals
from Flynn and sophomore defender Catherine Swanson (2g), and built
a 7-4 lead by halftime. Junior midfielder Leslie Foard paced the
Cardinal with a hat trick.
James Madison stormed out after the break, though, going on a
four-goal run to gain its first lead of the game at 13:36 on a free
position shot by Lomady (2g, 1a).
"I don't think we had a doubt in our minds that we could win this
game," said senior Kim Griffin (1a).
After Lomady's tally, the teams traded goals, and then James
Madison went into a more settled mode, controlling both the ball
and the tempo. Neither team scored during the last 11:35 minutes of
the game. Cardinal junior goalie Annie Read finished with seven
saves.
"They played a great game, top to bottom, with a high level of
physical play. We were unable to sustain the energy in the second
half," said Stanford head coach Amy Bokker.
James Madison freshman phenom Casey Ancarrow led all scorers with
three goals and an assist, but the source of the Dukes'
determination came from an older source. The team received an early
season visit from the alums of James Madison's 2000 squad -- the
one and only Dukes' team that ever reached the final
four.
"We had the talent [in the past], but we had trouble coming
together as a team. A lot of our motivation came from those
women back for their 10th-year reunion. They told us we're just as
capable," said Griffin.
"We know our season's not coming to an end anytime soon."
