HAVERFORD, Pa. - The 23rd-ranked Haverford College women's lacrosse team (7-2) fell to No. 16 Amherst (3-2) by a score of 16-11 on Wednesday afternoon in a top-25 showdown on a sunny and warm afternoon at Swan Field.
Bella Gattuso and Tiffany Mikulis led the Fords' offense with three goals each, with Mikulis also recording a team-high four points. Brooke Epstein secured a team-best six draw controls, while Lilly Provost and Eva Baumann each caused two turnovers. In goal, Annie Bravacos made four saves on 16 shots faced.
Haverford jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the first quarter after goals from Sophie Jaffe and Daniela Martini with 11:19 remaining. However, Amherst responded as Clara Sosa scored at the 9:01 mark, followed by an equalizer from Ella Shay with 5:47 left in the period to tie the game at 2-2. Mikulis reclaimed the lead for Haverford just over a minute later, but a late goal from Natalie Bole with 30 seconds left sent the Fords into the second quarter up 4-2.
Gattuso opened the second-quarter scoring with a free-position goal at the 10:55 mark, followed by Epstein's first goal of the game, extending Haverford's lead to 6-2 with 9:40 left in the half. Amherst, however, closed the gap before the break with goals from Sofia Guttman (6:27) and a player-up goal from Sydney Kang, trimming Haverford's lead to 6-4 at halftime.
A free-position goal from Mikulis with 13:57 remaining in the third quarter made it 7-4, but Amherst quickly countered. A free-position goal from Bridget Finley brought the Mammoths within two at 7-5, followed by Guttman's second goal just 20 seconds later, cutting the deficit to 7-6 with 12:02 left in the period.
Gattuso notched her third goal to push Haverford's lead to 8-6, but Amherst responded with a 4-0 run to take a 10-8 lead into the final quarter. The Mammoths' surge began with a player-up goal from Sosa at the 6:20 mark, followed by two goals from Mia Raven (one off a free position) and another from Guttman.
Finley added another free-position goal to extend Amherst's lead to 11-8 with 14:11 remaining, but Gattuso answered less than a minute later to make it 11-9. Finley and Sosa then completed their hat tricks just over a minute apart, pushing Amherst's lead to 13-9. A player-up goal from Raven made it 14-9 with 8:06 to play.
Louisa Coughlin scored her third goal of the season, cutting the Mammoths' lead to 14-10, but late goals from Emily Petersen and Raven sealed a commanding 16-10 advantage for Amherst. Mikulis tallied a final free-position goal with 25 seconds left, but time ran out on the Fords, as the Mammoths secured the 16-11 victory.
Haverford will look to bounce back on Saturday, March 22, as the Fords open Centennial Conference play against Ursinus in Collegeville, Pa. The conference opener is set for a 12 p.m. start.