This weekend, The University of Colorado women’s lacrosse team ended its regular season in spectacular fashion. While on the road, the Buffs defeated St. Mary’s 24-5 on Friday, and took down the California Golden Bears 18-6 on Sunday.
With these two victories the Buffs locked down their place in Colorado lacrosse history. They finished with the best record in the program’s four-year existence – they only lost twice as opposed to their 15 wins, including four against top-ranked opponents.
The Buffs ended up ranking second overall in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation conference (MPSF), boasting a record of 7-1. If they had not lost to USC on the road earlier this month, Colorado would rank first. They are also ranked No. 9 in both the Inside Lacrosse and IWLCA Coaches polls.
The Buffs have thrived this season under head coach Ann Elliott. Of their previous seasons, their best record was 13-5 in 2016.
Friday afternoon’s match against the St. Mary’s Gaels was also a record setting event. The Buffs broke their single-game goal record of 23 after an offensive explosion in which CU saw goals from 13 players.
Junior attacker Darby Kiernan headed the scoring with a total of four, all of which occurred in the first half. She also had three assists throughout the game. Redshirt sophomore midfielder Blair Sisk also recorded three goals of her own, giving her the second highest goal count of the day.
Six other Buffs scored two goals apiece to increase the team’s ever-growing advantage over the Gaels.
Senior goalie Paige Soenksen had an easy day in the net. St. Mary’s found success in only two of their three shots against her. At the half, senior goalie Sophia Gambitsky replaced Soenksen and failed to block three of the opponent’s four shots.
On Sunday, the Buffs repeated their success. Colorado’s defeat of the Golden Bears marked the ninth time CU has defeated their opponents by 10 or more goals.
This victory, once again, was led not by one person, but by eight. Sophomore midfielder Miranda Stinson and Kiernan were the Buffs’ top scorers, netting four goals apiece. Senior attacker Johnna Fusco also had three goals to help lift the Buffs over the Bears.
More so than in Friday’s match, the Golden Bears tested CUs net more. Soenksen recorded six saves in the first 30 minutes of play, and eight overall.
The Buffs are currently heading into the MPSF conference tournament with a three game win streak. They clinched a spot in the tournament last week after securing a top-six finish in the conference standings. The winner of the MPSF championships will move on to the NCAA tournament; Colorado is more competitive this year than in years past and is looking to make its first appearance in the NCAA tournament.
It is yet to be determined who the Buffs will take on in the quarterfinal round of the MPSF championships. They will likely play California or San Diego State on Friday May 12, at a time still to be determined.
Contact CU Independent Assistant Sports Editor Olivia Butrymovich at Olivia.Butrymovich@colorado.edu.
