SALISBURY, Md. - The 24th-ranked Haverford College women's lacrosse team (12-7) saw its season come to a close in the first round of the NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Championship on Saturday afternoon, as the Fords fell to Cabrini (15-4) by a 14-12 final score at Sea Gull Stadium in Salisbury.
Newly minted USA Lacrosse Magazine All-American Tiffany Mikulis led the Fords with three goals, while Abbey Bonner and Jordan Denaver each contributed a pair of tallies. Additionally, Kylie Kearon, Brooke Epstein, Kyle McNamara, Louisa Coughlin, and Ellie Hughes all found the back of the net for the Fords.
Mikulis also contributed six draw controls, setting a new Haverford program record with 169 for her career as she enters her senior season, surpassing Diana Perry '15, who finished her career with 167. Mikulis added two caused turnovers and two ground balls. Lizzie Symonds made six saves in her 52 minutes of action, while Annie Bravacos played the final 8:24 in goal, making one save.
For Cabrini, Little led with a game-best five goals, with Alena Catka adding four. Morgan McClintock contributed five ground balls and three caused turnovers, while Caroline Gallagher added six caused turnovers.
Cabrini opened the scoring at the 10:30 mark of the first quarter, with Catka finding Little for a 1-0 Cavaliers lead. The Fords quickly answered off the ensuing draw, as Mikulis found Coughlin down low for the equalizer. McNamara extended the lead at the 6:24 mark off a solid feed from Brooke Epstein, followed by another goal from Mikulis. Ellie Hughes then scored to put the Fords up 4-2, but a goal from Catka on a free-position brought the Cavaliers back within one. Catka later tallied in the opening minute of the second period to tie the score at 4-4.
Cabrini then went on a 5-0 run, controlling the tempo of the contest over the next several minutes. The stretch included a goal from Olivia Little and a pair of assists from the AEC Player of the Year as she distributed helpers to Catka and Neve Murphy. Epstein broke a long scoring drought for the Fords with an unassisted tally with 15 seconds remaining before halftime, pulling Haverford back to within two and giving the Fords some much-needed momentum entering the break.
After Morgan McClintock delivered a free-position goal for the visitors to begin the second half scoring, the Fords found their rhythm, with Mikulis and Jordan Denaver each scoring in a stretch of less than 30 seconds. Little broke the streak with a goal, but Haverford then surged forward with four consecutive goals as Denaver and Kylie Kearon tied the score at the end of the third quarter.
In the final frame, the Fords continued to fight for key possessions, with Abby Bonner scoring a player-down goal to give Haverford its first lead since 4-3 late in the first quarter. Bonner later extended the lead with another goal that came less than a minute later.
Cabrini then seized a 4-0 run of its own with Little again proving to be the catalyst. She scored an unassisted tally and later fed McClintock to tie the score at 11-11. Little and Neary scored to put the Cavs up two late, but Mikulis pulled the Fords back within one with 5:04 to play.
Haverford took the ensuing draw, but Abbey Fenton made a crucial save on a Mikulis shot. Haverford called for a timeout with 2:54 left, and again went to work offensively with Jordan Denaver ripping a shot towards the frame that Fenton was able to deny. The ball went back to Cabrini with just over 90 seconds left, as after a successful clear from the Cavaliers, they were content to chew the shot clock down to its waning seconds. Catka slotted a shot into goal to seal things for the Cavs.
This marked Haverford's sixth NCAA tournament appearance and second in three years. The Fords finished the 2024 season with a 12-7 overall record and made their fourth consecutive trip to the Centennial Conference semifinals.
Looking ahead to 2025, the Fords will miss the contributions of its seniors from the Class of 2024: Lizzie Healy, Jordan Denaver, Jill DiTomasso, and Emily Harrington. However, Haverford will return first-team All-Conference selections attacker Brooke Epstein, midfielder Tiffany Mikulis, and defender Eva Baumann, as well as standout first-year goalkeeper Lizzie Symonds, who earned CC honorable mention. The Fords' offense will return 222 of its 229 goals from the 2024 season.