The Georgetown women’s lacrosse team (9-8, 3-2 Big East) dropped a heartbreaker in the final minutes against the Marquette Golden Eagles (9-8, 3-2 Big East) on Saturday afternoon on the road. After being ahead the whole game, the Hoyas struggled late and saw Marquette come from behind to snag a win that will have a great influence on the bracket for the Big East tournament. The Hoyas were led by junior attacker Michaela Bruno and senior attacker Taylor Gebhardt with four and three goals respectively, while Marquette’s best performers were senior midfielder Grace Gabriel and graduate student attacker Charlotte McGuire, who added five and four goals each.
Georgetown started the game on the right foot, going up 2-0 in the first three minutes thanks to goals from senior attacker Morgan Ryan and Gebhardt. The Golden Eagles would get on the board thanks to a goal from McGuire, followed by a Georgetown goal by Bruno that would make it 3-1. Marquette quickly tied the game with two goals from McGuire and senior attacker Cate Soccodato, making it 3-3. Georgetown then went on a 4-0 run that established the first solid lead of the game for the Hoyas, with two free-position goals from senior midfielder Francesca Whitehurst and a goal each from Gebhardt and Bruno. Marquette cut into the lead before the end of the half, making the score 7-5 for the Hoyas. Georgetown had four more shots on goal than the Golden Eagles, but a stellar performance from junior goalkeeper Julianna Horning with seven saves kept the score close.
The Hoyas were not bothered by the end of the first half and started off the second half with a 2-0 run that restored the four-goal lead. However, things started to get dark for Georgetown at this point, as the Golden Eagles went on a 4-0 run to tie the game, casting doubt in the visitors’ heads. After a timeout from head coach Ricky Fried, the Hoyas reestablished their attacking game following a seven-minute goal drought and scored two quick goals from junior attacker Emily Ehle and Bruno. The Golden Eagles tied it back up with two goals in two minutes from Gabriel and freshman attacker Shea Garcia, but Georgetown regained the lead with 10:09 to go thanks to a goal from Morgan Ryan. However, the Hoyas did not score again in the whole game, combining a lack of accuracy and four saves from Horning, giving Marquette the opportunity to complete the comeback. The Golden Eagles scored three goals in the last ten minutes to secure the win, making the Hoyas drop down to the third seed for the Big East tournament.
2-seed Georgetown, looking for revenge, will face the 3-seed Eagles again in the semifinals of the Big East tournament in Milwaukee, WI. next Thursday at 7:00 p.m. ET. Follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter for more updates and coverage of all sports at Georgetown.
