Sports Shorts

JULIA TIERNAN/YH Kate Flatley, SY '01, is one of the No. 17 Elis top scorers.

Optimism squashed, hope forgotten, confidence battered. A great deal can happen in the course of a few weeks, a fact to which the Yale women's lacrosse team can attest. Having dropped two of their last four games, the Elis (9-3, 7-2 Ivy) have lost their chance for the Ivy League title and an NCAA tournament bid. "It's disappointing to start the season 14th [in the nation] and end 17th," defender Heather Richey, BR '02, said.

One month ago, as the club prepared to embark upon its Ivy season, expectations ran high. Even as recently as two weeks ago, the team seemed very confident heading into its upcoming games, matchups that held the promise of an Ivy title and an NCAA bid. Today the players are searching for answers to the questions that still hang over the club.

The team's 16-8 loss to Princeton on Sat., Apr. 8, coupled with its 17-4 defeat against Duke on Sun., Apr. 16, dashed the team's postseason hopes. "I don't think person-to-person they were better than us," attacker Clara Gillespie, PC '01, said. "We made mental mistakes over and over again." The Duke game was a prime example. The Eli offense shut down in the middle of the first half and scored only one goal for the remainder of the game.

The losses were surprising for a team that had played well for much of the season. "We have emphasized team effort," Gillespie said. "We have more balance than last year, when we counted too much on two players." Yet, last year, the team made it all the way to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) tournament championship game—a fact Gillespie found hard to explain. "I think we have a better team this year," she said. "It could be that other teams are getting better."

Whatever the reasons for the team's decline, it still has to make it through the final three games of the season—Cornell on Sat., Apr. 22, Rutgers on Wed., Apr. 26, and finally Johns Hopkins on Sat., Apr. 29. These games will test the team's character. "We want to prove to ourselves that we can win these games," Richey said. —James Fagan

SOFTBALL
Bulldogs get back on track with wins over Boston College

After two losses last weekend, Yale softball needed a boost. They got it with 6-5 and 3-2 victories over Boston College in a doubleheader on Wed., Apr. 19. These wins put the Elis in good position to take on Columbia on Fri., Apr. 21 and Cornell on Sat., Apr. 22. "I foresee us successfully completing the season undefeated," pitcher Teri Hickey, SY '01, said. "If we take the momentum from this weekend and go out attacking, we will sweep them."

In order to fulfill Hickey's goal for the team, the Bulldogs will need strong all-around contributions from more players than have been stepping up in recent games. The team has already showed a talent for increasing its level of play in clutch situations. In the first game against Dartmouth on Sun., Apr. 16, the Elis were able to score a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to draw close to the Big Green, but eventually stranded two runners and fell, 3-2. In the second game, though, they entered the bottom of the seventh inning down by one run and scored two runs with Jesseka Bartholomew, ES '03, driving in the winning run to beat Dartmouth 3-2. Hickey played a crucial role in the win, pitching an excellent game and lowering her ERA to 1.07. The Bulldogs were able to rely on strong defensive play, especially by catcher Kristen Maturo, MC '01. The defense turned two double plays in the victory, and Maturo made a play at the plate to keep a Dartmouth player from scoring.

The wins over Boston College dropped the previously untouchable Eagles to 5-3 against Ivy opponents. "Despite a 3-4 record in Ivy play, we still have a shot at the [Ivy League] title," Maturo said. "Though we may no longer control our own destiny, the Ivy League race is far from over, and we're going to fight for the top spot." —Darcy Wiecks

MEN'S LACROSSE
Rising above the pain

After emerging from a tough game against Dartmouth on Wed., Apr. 19 with a 10-4 win, the injury-plagued men's lacrosse team is on a four-game winning streak. Before the game, attacker Chris McIntyre, SY '00, dropped out of the lineup with a stomach flu. Somehow, though, the team added a win to its streak at the expense of the Big Green.

"Everyone was much more intense in the Dartmouth game," midfielder Marko Lujic, TC '02, said. "I think it was our best overall effort, and definitely the hardest we have played since the Penn game."

"Even thought we were understaffed, it was our best all-around performance," defensive coach Darryl Delia said. Attackers Brian Hunt, TD '02, and Mike Scaglione, PC '03, led the team against Dartmouth with four and three goals, respectively. The Elis will have to keep up the aggressive offense for their final league game against Harvard on Sat., Apr. 22.

The keys to beating the Crimson (6-4, 2-2 Ivy) will be keeping the intensity high and getting the entire team to work together. Harvard's star goalie, Keith Cynar '00, will provide a true test for Yale's offense. "They have a really tight defense and a very good goalie," Delia said. "We will need to play with a strong offense and a solid defense."

Despite the team's youth, its record (7-4, 2-3 Ivy) shows its talent and drive. "The team is really stepping up," Will McClelland, DC '02, said. "We have shown flashes of really good play. We just need to be more consistent."

—Lindsey Stimpson

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