Red-Hot Gators Avenge Loss to Colgate
from press release
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The newly-minted No. 10
Florida lacrosse team, led by four Gator hat tricks, avenged last
year’s overtime loss at Colgate by overpowering the Raiders,
18-6, on Tuesday evening at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. Florida was
led by sophomore midfielder Brittany Dashiell (Bel Air, Md.), who
recorded a career-high in both goals and points, with five and six,
respectively.
The Gators outmatched the Raiders in every statistical category, as
Florida outshot Colgate, 37-13, while also going 3-for-3 on free
position shots.
Florida had many multi-goal scorers, as sophomore midfielder Kitty
Cullen (Rockville, Md.) contributed four goals, and sophomore
attackers Ashley Bruns (Ellicott City, Md.) and Janine Hillier
(Farmingdale, N.Y.) scored three goals apiece. The Gators also saw
goals from sophomore midfielder Caroline Chesterman (South Nyack,
N.Y.), sophomore midfielder Colby Rhea (Abingdon, Md.), and the
first-career score for freshman midfielder Kelsey Dlugos (Commack,
N.Y.). Junior attacker Caroline Cochran (Annapolis, Md.) led the
team with two assists while sophomore midfielders Haydon Judge
(Chestertown, Md.) and Jamie Reeg (Atlantis, Fla.) each assisted on
Gator scores.
“I thought the team played very, very well, offensively,
defensively and across the board” Florida head coach Amanda
O’Leary said. “I thought Brittany Dashiell had an
incredible game. She put a lot of goals on the board and she also
picked up their best player and played her on the crease really,
really well. All in all, I’m really pleased to come out of
here with a win.”
Colgate drew first blood, as the Raiders’ Courtney Miller
scored just seven minutes into the contest. Florida then went on a
four-goal tear, sparked by Cullen’s first goal of the
evening, barely a minute after Miller’s score. Hillier found
the back of the net four minutes later thanks to a feed from behind
the net from Dashiell. Cullen cut through the Colgate defense,
despite being double-teamed and face-guarded, to score again nearly
halfway through the first stanza. Dashiell scored less than a
minute later to put the Gators ahead, 4-1.
One of Colgate’s leading scorers, Colleen Bubnack, scored her
lone goal of the evening with 14:38 remaining in the half, and was
held to only two shots the entire game. Dashiell answered once
again, this time finding a great Cochran pass to score before
Miller found the back of the net a second time, pulling within two,
5-3. Dashiell had another answer, sparking a six-goal run that
extended into the second half, as Florida took the momentum into
halftime, leading 7-3. The Gators used free position goals from
Bruns and Cullen to close the first half and start the second, as
Bruns was able to score with only 20 seconds remaining in the first
half. Cullen had her chance just a few minutes later, as she used
her speed to her advantage, outsprinting her defenders and finding
the back of the net just a little over two minutes into the second
stanza.
The Gators then had two scores in 14 seconds, as Dashiell found the
net unassisted before Reeg notched her second assist of the season,
a great look inside the eight-meter for Chesterman. Rhea scored a
little over a minute later, thanks to a fantastic midfield pass
from sophomore midfielder Kayla Stolins, who saw the opportunity
for Rhea to speed past her defenders and score.
Florida then went on another six-goal run, thanks to Haydon
Judge’s perfect feed to Cullen to put the Gators ahead, 12-4.
Bruns found the back of the net twice in the run, with her scores
bookended by two Hillier goals. Dashiell scored her career-high
fifth goal and sixth point off a feed in front of the goal from
Cochran to give the Gators their largest lead of the evening with
13 goals. Colgate scored back-to-back in a last-ditch effort to
penetrate the Florida defense but with 28 seconds remaining in the
contest, Dlugos scored off a free position shot to notch her first
goal as a Gator.
“We knew going into tonight that our defense needed to play a
great game,” O’Leary said. “They are a
high-scoring offense and I think we did a great job. They were
solid on 1-v-1 opportunities and constantly double-teamed them.
I’m very pleased with our defensive effort and Mikey Meagher
(Liverpool, N.Y.) made some great saves for us.”
The Gators now look to take on No. 11 Syracuse in their second
televised match of the season. Opening draw at Dizney Stadium is at
1:00 p.m. The Orange are 1-3 on the season and made a huge NCAA
Tournament run last season before falling to the eventual National
Champion Maryland Terrapins. Saturday’s game will be
televised on Sun Sports with Bernie Guenther and Jenny Ulehla on
the call. Fans can also listen in on www.GatorZone.com with Andrew
Suarez and Mike Gillespie calling the action.
