University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
20-1, 9-0 A-10
No. 13 Cornell
14-5, 5-2Ivy
Elite Eight Bound! Women's Lax Heads To NCAA Quarterfinals
May 15, 2016 | Women's Lacrosse
May 15, 2016
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ITHACA, N.Y. - For the first time since 1984, the UMass women's lacrosse team will be playing in the NCAA Lacrosse Tournament Quarterfinals following a dramatic 7-6 win over eighth-seeded Cornell on Sunday afternoon at Schoellkopf Field. The Minutewomen will head to No. 1 seed Maryland next weekend to take on the Terps in the Elite Eight round.
After leading 6-4 at halftime, it was the defense which led the Minutewomen (20-1) in the second half. UMass scored the opening goal of the second stanza and then held Cornell scoreless for the final 23 minutes of play.
In her traditional second half start, it was Aileen Kelly who provided a spark in goal making six saves to earn her third consecutive win. Her sixth save with five minutes to go gained possession back for the Minutewomen who were able to run out the final moments of the clock for the win.
Offensively, UMass was led by Erika Eipp and Eileen McDonald who both had two goals and an assist. Hannah Murphy had two goals, including the only UMass score of the second half, and three draw controls.
Cornell (14-5) was led by Taylor Reed who had two goals and an assist along with Catherine Ellis who had a pair of goals as well. Goalie Renee Poullott took the loss making eight saves including six in the second half.
The Minutewomen opened the game with a four-goal run over the first nine minutes of action. Erika Eipp notched both her goals in the first five minutes. McDonald and Santos added back-to-back goals within 20 seconds of each other going up 4-0 at the 21 minute mark.
The two teams traded goals for the next 10 minutes before Reed pulled the Big Red back within two, 6-4, with just under seven minutes before halftime.
In the second half, Murphy tallied an unassisted goal at the 28:33 mark pushing the UMass lead back to three. Cornell then scored back-to-back goals to make it a one-goal game, 7-6, with 23:35 to go.
From there, the game became a defensive slugfest with both teams packing in the zones on long possessions. After giving up the two Cornell goals, Kelly made all six of her saves to hold the Big Red at bay. Poullott was equally impressive with six saves herself to keep the Minutewomen off the board.
Kelly made three key saves in the final 11 minutes of play after several long offensive sets by Cornell. Her save with 4:59 to go allowed the Minutewomen to hold the ball for the final moments of the game. UMass methodically ran the clock out working the back-and-forth the entire length of the field.
After carrying the ball back into its offensive third in the final 20 seconds, Cornell nearly caused a turnover with a check, but Eipp was able to collect the loose ball to safely run back to midfield as the buzzer sounded.
For the game, UMass held an 18-to-17 advantage in shots and an 8-to-7 edge in draws. Cornell held a 7-to-4 advantage in draws, but the Minutewomen won all four in the second half.
The 20 wins for UMass tied the school record of the 1978 season that saw the program post a 20-2-2 mark. The victory on Sunday also extended the Minutewomen's current win streak to 16 straight games.
With the two NCAA Tournament wins this season, UMass is now 4-3 in postseason play over the last four years after advancing to the NCAA second round in 2013 and 2015. This marks the fourth time in program history that UMass has advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals after semifinal appearances in 1983 and 1984. UMass won the first-ever NCAA sponsored women's lacrosse National Championship in 1982.
