The Binghamton University women’s lacrosse team concluded an intense two-week stretch Saturday, coming home from a five-game road trip to defeat the University of Vermont Catamounts in thrilling fashion at the Bearcats Sports Complex, 14-13.
The Bearcats (3-9, 1-1 America East) did not get the March break off, traveling to High Point, N.C. on March 21. The High Point Panthers (6-2) held off the Bearcats 13-10, despite hat tricks from Bearcat seniors Beth Moore and Ali Castiglie, who twice cut the lead to two in the second half. High Point is in its first season at the Division I level.
Binghamton took its four-game losing streak into Charlotte, N.C. the next day to take on the Davidson Wildcats in another non-conference matchup. BU took a 3-1 lead early in the first half and never looked back.
Eight different Bearcats found the back of the net in a 14-10 win that saw both Moore and Castiglie score hat tricks for the second straight game. Although Davidson attempted a furious rally near the end that brought it within two at 12-10, Binghamton refused to falter and closed out strongly in its second win of the season.
Defense was the name of the game, as the Bearcats posted a 13-for-13 clear rate, caused 10 turnovers and senior goalkeeper Lauren Scott stopped five of Davidson’s nine free position shots.
Four days later, the Bearcats opened up the America East season on the road against the Boston University Terriers.
Slow starts have hampered the Bearcats play all season long, and this game was no different. The six-time defending champion Terriers had built a 5-1 lead midway through the first half, but the Bearcats managed three consecutive goals by junior Lis Zuern, Castiglie and redshirt senior Lizzie Wright.
The Terriers, though, went on a commanding 9-0 run that spanned both halves and put the game far out of reach. The final score was 15-6.
Nearly every facet of the game was dominated by Boston University, as it outshot Binghamton 30-12 and controlled 17 out of 23 draws.
Moore scored twice and became the first player to eclipse the century mark in program history, bringing her career total to 101 goals.
In the finale of the five-game road trip, the Bearcats then headed to Hamilton, N.Y. to face the Colgate Raiders in a non-conference match.
A high-scoring first half saw Colgate race out to a 4-0 lead before Binghamton began to settle into the game, making two significant runs to draw within 7-4 at halftime, helped by Castiglie’s two goals in the final minute of the first half.
Colgate came out strong in the second half, immediately tallying three goals in the first four minutes. After goals by Binghamton sophomores Katherine Hunsberger and Casey Bulman, the Raiders went on a 6-0 run that led to a 19-9 win.
Binghamton outshot Colgate and won the draw battle, but couldn’t convert its free position shots, only scoring two of nine.
The Bearcats finally returned home to host the Vermont Catamounts, playing their first game at the Bearcats Sports Complex in over two weeks and their first home conference match.
It ended up being worth the wait, as Binghamton snapped the Catamounts’ five-game winning streak in a game that would come down to the closing moments.
It did not begin well for the Bearcats, as yet another slow start seemed to doom them. Coming back from down three, they took a 5-4 lead, and though that lead was threatened several times, Binghamton never trailed again.
After another Vermont goal leveled the game, Binghamton closed out the first half on another 3-0 run to take an 8-5 lead at the break.
Vermont tied the game at nine due to a weak second-half start by the Bearcats. Binghamton would again push its lead, this time to three, and the scoreboard read 13-10 in favor of the home team with 4:33 remaining.
The Catamounts scored the next two goals, but a clutch Castiglie goal with 56 seconds remaining sealed the deal, earning Binghamton’s first conference win of the season.
Castiglie’s assist to make the score 5-4 was the 144th point of her career, a program record, and she is one goal away from 100. Another goal would make her the second player in program history to record 100 goals, behind fellow senior Moore, whose total now stands at 105. Castiglie’s six-goal performance marked her career-high for goals in a game and her career weekend led to her first America East Player of the Week honor.
The Bearcats are scheduled to hit the road on Saturday for a matchup at Stony Brook University. Faceoff is set for 1 p.m.