The second weekend of March went brilliantly for UChicago’s women’s lacrosse team with two wins secured against the rival Albion Britons and Kalamazoo Hornets.
First was Friday’s hard-fought 13–10 victory against Albion. The Maroons entered the match undefeated at 3–0, the Britons not far behind at 2–1 on the year. It was no surprise, then, that the match began on a competitive note—despite Maroon first-year Karina Schulze netting the first goal—with Albion taking a 3–1 lead. The Maroons quickly claimed the lead, however, after first-years Lally Johnson and Schulze combined for three unanswered goals: two from Johnson, one from Schulze. The match would bounce back and forth similarly throughout. Albion quickly responded, tying the game at 5–5, before the Maroons found the net four times in succession to set the score at 9–5. The tenacious Britons rallied, however, and reduced the deficit to 9–8; UChicago then responded in kind, scoring thrice to lead 12–8. Albion’s hopes were lifted, however, when a pair of goals left them down only two at 12–10; yet it was first-year Abbey Pouba who had the last laugh, scoring a dagger to end the match—and the Hornet’s hopes of victory—at 13–10.
UChicago’s play on Friday was dominated by an aggressive offense. The Maroons attempted 40 shots—17 more than the Hornets. Friday’s goal-scorers were Johnson with four goals; Schulze with three goals; first-year Ali Sheehy with three goals; first-year Anne Sensenig with one goal; first-year Abbey Pouba with one goal; and third-year Maya De Jonge with one goal.
Diametrically opposed to the hard-fought win against Albion was the Maroon’s match against Kalamazoo, a rout that ended 17–6 in UChicago’s favor. The game got off to a lightning start for Pouba, who scored a hat-trick in the first minute of the game. The Maroon’s shock-and-awe performance set a strong precedent throughout the remainder of the game; by the interval, the match was 10–4, a figure that was increased to 14–4 just minutes into the second half. The Hornets attempted to save some degree of face with a free-position goal, leaving the game at 14–5, but the Maroons were quick to pump the brakes with two additional goals. The match ended 17–6 after a final goal by UChicago team captain De Jonge.
Sunday’s game was marked by an exceedingly efficient Maroon offense. Chicago amassed their 17 points in just 34 shots, recording an aggregate shoot-score percentage of 50 percent. Scorers on Sunday for Chicago were predominantly the team’s most junior members: Pouba with five goals; Schulze with four goals; Johnson with two goals; first-year Isabelle Moran with two goals; first-year Audrey Kaus with one goal; Sheehy with one goal; Sensenig with one goal; and De Jonge with one goal.
The Maroons left the weekend 5–0 on the season. They next play Linfield (currently 0–1) at Stagg Field on Sunday, March 24.
