March 10, 2010

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ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Nationally-ranked William & Mary scored four unanswered goals to break up a 7-7 second-half tie and staved off a late Navy comeback attempt in a hard-fought 14-9 victory on Wednesday afternoon at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

The Tribe, who entered the week ranked 18th in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll, improve to 3-2 on the season with the win. Meanwhile, the Mids, who held up strong in their first foray against a top-20 opponent, see their seven-game win streak snapped and fall to 7-1 on the year.

"We are disappointed," said Navy head coach Cindy Timchal.  "We certainly thought we had an opportunity to knock off a top-20 team today. I thought we really matched their intensity and play for about three quarters of the game, but we turned the ball over a bit more than we usually do against their pressure and struggled on draws in the second half, which I think caused the momentum to shift in their favor."

William & Mary got on the board first with a free-position goal at the 24:52 mark from Molly Wannen and scored three goals over a one-minute, 23-second span with Navy down a player to jump out to a 4-1 lead after just 12 minutes of first-half action.
 
A determined Navy squad would storm right back with four unanswered goals and keep the Tribe at bay for nearly 16 minutes to take its first and only lead of the day. Mary Ruttum got the run started, charging to the cage from behind the net for an unassisted score at 16:58. Navy's team captain, Erin Rawlick (Sr., Forest Hill, Md.) then got into the act with the first of two-straight scores on a free position shot at 8:02. Rawlick would strike again on a picture-perfect roll dodge to even the score at 4-4 with 6:59 left in the half.  With the momentum now squarely behind the Midshipmen, Madison Bell (So., Baltimore, Md.) converted a free position to put Navy on top with 4:28 remaining.

The score would remain the same despite the frenetic series of plays that would follow. Molly Wannen nearly evened things up on a free position shot that got past Navy goalie Elaina Ponchione (So., Silver Spring, Md.), but struck the crossbar and caromed out to a Mids' defender. Navy would quickly transition down the field and nearly extended lead when Danielle Vivonetto (So., Rocky Point, N.Y.) corralled a rebound and made an athletic play to send a quick-stick shot on goal, but that attempt would strike the post.

The Tribe made the most of a late Navy turnover as Stephanie Steinweg scored an unassisted goal with just 2:13 left in the stanza to make it a 5-5 game after an exciting first 30 minutes. The two teams were even in the shots after the first half (16-6) and remained close in ground balls (Navy 11-8) and draw controls (W&M 6-5), but what stood out most was a striking disparity in eight-meter attempts, as the Tribe received 10 attempts compared to the Mids' three.

The two teams would alternate scores early out of the break with each side scoring twice to make it a 7-7 game with 24:21 left in regulation. William & Mary's Grace Golden scored her lone goal of the day to kick-start a 4-0 run at the 23:27 mark and the Tribe added a pair of scores with Navy again down a player to re-capture the contest's momentum. When all was said and done, Navy's four yellow cards proved to be rather costly as William & Mary scored seven of its 14 goals with the Mids playing down a man.

The Mids would halt their 11-plus minute scoreless stretch on the 15th goal of the year from Kathy Young (Fr., Berwyn, Pa.) with 13:13 left and then draw to within 11-9 after a William & Mary turnover gave Navy possession and led to a Vivonetto tally with just under 10 minutes remaining. Trailing by two score and having already overcome a three-goal deficit, the Mids would win the ensuing draw, but quickly lose possession as the Tribe's relentless ride forced a Navy turnover, one of 10 in the second half (19 in the contest).

William & Mary would take advantage of a Navy yellow card at the 7:44 mark as Sally Roberts scored the first of back-to-back goals with exactly seven minutes left on the clock. The Tribe once again would benefit from the Mids being down a player after Beth Young (Fr., Berwyn, Pa.) was sent off with a yellow at 4:59 and Roberts again was again the beneficiary, restoring the four-goal advantage. Mary Zulty's game-high fourth goal of the game rounded out the day's scoring with just 18 seconds remaining.

"Give credit to William and Mary," added Timchal. "They came in here inspired after a tough loss at Boston University and were awfully tough, particularly in the second half. I thought we were wearing them down in the first half, but they seemed to find their second wind. We had our chances and we left all we had on the field, but collectively as a team we still have some areas we need to improve in order to play at that level for a full 60 minutes."

On the final stat sheet, William & Mary had a 37-26 advantage in shots, 14-11 edge in draw controls and finished 3-of-16 on eight-meter attempts. The Mids had a strong day clearing the ball with 16-of-18 successful trips up the field and won the ground ball battle, 19-15.

The Tribe were led by Zulty (4 g, 1 a) and Ashley Holofcener (2 g, 3 a), who each finished with five points apiece. Geary played well in goal, coming up with eight saves in the win.

Rawlick, the leading scorer nationally coming into the week, led the Mids with three goals and a share of the game-high with six draw controls. She has now scored a goal in 43-straight games (the fourth-longest streak nationally) and has 55 points (37 g, 18 a) in just eight games. Perhaps most importantly, her strong effort against the Tribe, a CAA stronghold, further affirms her status as one of the country's top players.

"Erin has certainly demonstrated that she can play with the very best in the country," said Timchal. "They face-guarded her for most of the first half, but she still was a major presence."

"I was really proud of the effort we put in," said the always-humble Rawlick. "I thought we put up a great fight and really hung right with them, especially in the first half. I think we showed that we have the talent to play with a top team.

"As a team I think we need to do a better job of taking care of the ball, but I still think there is a lot for us to take away from this game. It was a great learning experience and I think it is just going to make us that much better down the road."

Navy will look to build upon this effort and get back in the win column this weekend, when the Mids open their six-game 2010 Patriot League slate on Saturday afternoon at Lafayette.

"We are going to get back on track," said Timchal. "I guarantee that."

## GO NAVY! ##