HAVERFORD, Pa. - The 24th-ranked Haverford College women's lacrosse team (9-4, 6-1 CC) returned to the win column with a 15-11 victory over the visiting Ursinus College Bears (7-6, 3-3 CC) on Wednesday night at Swan Field. The Fords continued their playoff push behind a pair of four-goal games from Brooke Epstein and Tiffany Mikulis. Epstein added a pair of assists while Daniela Martini paced the Fords in the category with three. Kylie McNamara, Kylie Kearon, and Ellie Hughes all added two goals while Abby Bonner tallied one.
Mikulis notched a Haverford-best seven draw controls while Epstein had four ground balls and joined Lauren Anderson with three caused turnovers. Lizzie Symonds made six saves between the pipes, picking up her seventh win of the season.
Haverford weathered an early 3-0 run for the Bears, responding with a 3-0 run of their own as Kearon tallied the Haverford opener on a free-position before a pair of player-up strikes from Mikulis and Epstein. The Bears refused to go away early, with Julia McCann and Meghan Vizian scoring to give the visitors a one-goal cushion entering the second frame.
In a defensive-minded second period, the Fords shut out Ursinus, with Abby Bonner and McNamara each scoring as Haverford took a slight 6-5 edge into the halftime intermission. The third saw the teams trade goals with the Fords taking two-goal leads at both 8-6 and 9-7 as Epstein and Mikulis each lit the lamp in that stretch. Neither side was able to gain much separation in the seesaw battle as Grace Lynch brought the Bears back within one at 11-10 with 9:09 remaining in regulation.
The Fords then darted out on a 2-0 run behind goals from Epstein and Kearon at the 5:50 mark to take the first three-goal lead of the contest since the visitors were up 3-0 in the early moments. Ursinus had an answer, with Mary Michaud trimming things back to a two-goal game in the waning moments, but the Bears ran out of steam late, with Epstein and Hughes adding unassisted tallies in the final three minutes.
A defensive showcase for the Fords resulted in 13 caused turnovers, with Haverford applying pressure and forcing errors all evening long.
Michaud led the way for Ursinus with four goals while the duo of McCann and Vizian each added two goals. Haverford held a 36-25 advantage in shots, and a 19-17 edge in ground balls. A physical game, the contest featured nine cards.
The contest was Haverford's annual One Love Game. The One Love Foundation was created in 2010 to honor the memory of former University of Virginia women's lacrosse player Yeardley Love. Since her passing, One Love's mission has been to educate, empower and activate young people in a movement to end relationship violence and to promote healthy relationships in its place.
Haverford's next matchup will be another tough one as they host the second-ranked Franklin & Marshall Diplomats on Saturday, April 20 for Senior Day on Swan Field. A win against the Diplomats will help the Fords nail down a spot in the Centennial Conference playoffs with just two Centennial Conference games remaining.
The opening draw is scheduled for 12 p.m. as the program will honor Lizzie Healy, Jill DiTommaso, Emily Harrington, and Jordan Denaver prior to the start of the contest.