WOMEN'S LACROSSE: Irish fall to No. 5 Hoyas
By ANTHONY BISHOP
Sports Writer
The Notre Dame women's lacrosse team ran into a wall in the midst of their climb to the top of the Big East standings.
Falling to fifth-ranked Georgetown 17-7 on Sunday, the Irish (8-4) move to 3-1 in the Big East, placing them behind the Hoyas (10-2), who are 5-0 in the conference.
"The Hoyas are a very good team. They deserve their No. 5 ranking," said head coach Tracy Coyne.
Georgetown showcases several all-Big East players, led by preseason all-American Sheehan Stanwick.
Georgetown came out of the gates fast and early, scoring the first four goals and never looking back. Their streak was broken by a goal from junior Tina Fedarcyk. Later, the Hoyas added another goal through a free-position shot, but Notre Dame answered immediately with two more goals of their own.
The Hoyas added another point before junior Natalie Loftus scored the first of her two goals, bringing the Irish to within two. It was then that Georgetown took over, dominating with eight straight goals in the next 28 minutes of play.
Loftus finally broke this trend with a goal at the 15:25 mark making the score 13-4. Another four goals from the Hoyas put the game way out of reach for the Irish, who scrambled for three more goals before the end of the game.
"We didn't capitalize on our possessions. When you play team as good as them, you have to take care of the ball. We didn't do that," said Coyne.
This loss was a setback for the Irish, who had hoped to break into the rankings for the first time ever, but it will not kill their chances. With two home games remaining — against rival Ohio State and Rutgers — as well as a closing game at 15th-ranked Syracuse, the Irish still have a good chance of breaking into the top 20 and receiving an invitation to the post-season tournament.
The next game for Notre Dame will be Wednesday at 4 p.m. in Moose Krause Stadium.
All Sports Stories for Tuesday, April 24, 2001
