COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The 23rd-ranked Haverford College women's lacrosse team opened Centennial Conference play with a hard-fought 13-12 victory over Ursinus on Patterson Field Saturday afternoon.
Brooke Epstein led the Fords with a five-point performance, tallying three goals, two assists, and a game-high eight draw controls. Kylie McNamara added a game-high four goals, while Alexis Brown and Tiffany Mikulis anchored the defense with three ground balls each. In the contest, Mikulis reached another career milestone, as the senior collected her 200th-career draw control with her third of four draw controls in the contest. In goal, Annie Bravacos made eight saves on 20 shots faced.
Haverford struck first when Bella Gattuso fired a shot past Ursinus goalie Allison McAnally at the 14:06 mark. Maeve Leonzi quickly responded for the Bears, tying the game at 1-1 with 10:31 left in the first quarter. McNamara put the Fords back in front with 3:35 remaining, but Ashley Noto equalized for Ursinus just over a minute later. McNamara's second goal of the quarter with 1:03 left sent Haverford into the second period with a 3-2 advantage.
Ursinus opened the second quarter with a goal from Jaime Michaud, but Daniela Martini answered to reclaim the Fords' lead at 4-3 with 10:18 left in the half. The Bears then took their first lead with back-to-back goals from Michaud and Leonzi. However, Haverford responded just before halftime as senior defender Eva Baumann scored her first collegiate goal, tying the game at 5-5 and setting off a raucous bench celebration.
The Fords came out strong to start the second half, as McNamara completed her hat trick and Epstein added her first goal, giving Haverford a 7-5 lead at the 13:05 mark of the third quarter. Ursinus pulled within one after a free-position goal from Grace Lynch, but another free-position goal from Gattuso extended Haverford's lead to 8-6 with 8:35 left in the third. Ryann Buchner quickly answered for the Bears to make it 8-7, but Epstein's second goal of the contest restored the Fords' two-goal advantage, 9-7, with 7:04 remaining.
The teams continued to trade goals, as Lynch struck again for Ursinus before Abby Bonner and Epstein each found the back of the net to give Haverford an 11-8 lead with 2:58 left in the third. Ursinus, however, finished the quarter strong, with goals from Noto and Leonzi cutting the Fords' advantage to 11-10 heading into the final period.
Noto completed her hat trick with 10:41 left to tie the game at 11-11, and Michaud gave Ursinus a 12-11 lead—their second of the game— with just 4:12 remaining in regulation. McNamara came through in the clutch for the Fords, scoring her fourth goal of the game to level the contest at 12-12 with 2:38 to play. Bonner then delivered the decisive blow, netting an unassisted goal with 1:27 remaining to put Haverford back in front, 13-12.
The Bears had a late opportunity when Epstein received a yellow card with 1:18 on the clock, giving Ursinus a player advantage in the waning moments. However, the Haverford defense stood firm, preventing the Bears from getting a shot off as the Fords held on for a dramatic 13-12 victory.
The Fords will now return to action on Saturday, March 29, at 1 p.m., when they host McDaniel for their annual Mental Health Awareness Game at Swan Field.