Savannah, GA – The second-ranked Cumberlands women's lacrosse team went on a 7-1 run to both open and close out the game as they defeated seventh-seed Keiser 18-13 Wednesday night at Memorial Stadium. The Patriots improve to 19-2 overall and advance to the semifinals against #3 Lawrence Tech Thursday night at 6 p.m.
Mia Bosah notched a career high 15 saves, including ten in the first half to lead the way for UC.
Anna Lobbezoo netted a career-high seven goals to go along with nine points and a pair of draw controls.
Aleyah Belton added four goals and two assists, while the trio of
Emma Rittman,
Morgan Terpstra, and
Ashlee Baker finished with three points apiece. Rittman scooped eight draw controls and four ground balls to lead the way, while Baker added four ground balls.
UC struck early as Belton netted a man-up goal two minutes into the game to give them the early lead. The Patriots added a pair of draw control wins that resulted in goals extending the lead to 3-0 with 10:41 remaining in the first quarter. Bosah made five saves over a five-minute span, while Rittman notched a goal and an assist to make it 5-0. Two minutes later, Lobbezoo found
Morgan Tate cutting for a goal as Cumberlands took the 6-1 lead into the second quarter.
The Patriots added a trio of goals from three different scorers over the first four minutes of the period to give UC a 9-1 advantage. The two teams traded goals before Keiser netted three unanswered cutting the lead to 10-5 at halftime. Bosah added five saves in the quarter to keep the Seahawks on their heels.
Keiser scored three unanswered goals to open the second half to pull within two at 10-8. The Patriots took advantage of a penalty as Belton netted her second man-up goal of the game to give UC a 11-8 edge with 4:37 remaining. Keiser added two goals, including one as time expired to cut the lead to 11-10.
Keiser added two goals in the two minutes of the fourth quarter to take an 12-11 lead. A minute later,
Marisa Helsten forced a turnover as Baker scooped the ground ball and put a well-placed shot into the cage for the equalizer. Cumberlands won the next two draw controls as Lobbezoo found Helsten for a goal before netted one of her own to put UC in front 14-12 with 10:45 remaining. The two teams traded goals, before Lobbezoo netted the final three goals of the game for the 18-13 final.
Cumberlands will face #3 Lawrence Tech, who defeated Benedictine16-11, in the semifinals. The game is set for 6 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
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