The Boston University women’s lacrosse team opened Patriot League play on Tuesday afternoon on the road in Washington, D.C., and the Terriers (2-3) came out on top with a 14-4 win over the American University Eagles.
BU held the Eagles (3-5) to two goals in each half of the game, and goaltender Caroline Meegan, now healthy after being injured in the first game of the season, made 14 saves to lead the way for the Terriers. It was her first game since leaving the opening contest against Boston College late in the second half.
The two goals of the first half for American actually gave the Eagles a 2-0 lead, and it took the Terriers nearly 20 minutes to finally get on the board. From there, BU scored eight straight goals to hold an 5-2 advantage at the half, and scored three more in the second half early to lead 8-2.
Jill Horka controlled eight draws and scored two goals, while Mickenzie Laviree led the team with three goals total. Jenny Thompson and Sarah Anderson each also found the back of the net twice, each time on 8-meter shots.
Kaitlin Belval scored her first career goal in the victory. BU outshot American overall, 37-23, and dominated on the draws, with 16 controls compared to just three all game for the Eagles. BU was also 5-of-7 in free position shots from the 8-meter line while the Eagles were unable to capitalize in any of their six opportunities.
American cut the score to 8-4 in the second half when Shauna Norris scored and Jennifer DiSimone added her second tally, but the Terriers went on a 6-0 run in the last 17 minutes of the game.
The Eagles fall to near the bottom of the Patriot League standings, ahead of just one-win Colgate and Loyola and the winless Holy Cross Crusaders. Starting out 1-0 in conference play is huge for a Terrier team looking to finish over .500 overall and now have an opportunity to finish near the top of the conference if they can continue to play well.
Several Patriot League contests take place tomorrow, with Colgate hosting Cornell, Bucknell facing Monmouth and Loyola hosting #9 Virginia.
On Friday afternoon, the Terriers will face the #20 ranked Johns Hopkins Blue Jays in what will likely be the toughest contest of the season other than the early contest against Boston College. Hopkins is 3-3, and has three losses in a row, including to Patriot League team Loyola, which is the Greyhounds only victory.
The structure of the Patriot League looks different than was expected going into the season, and if the Terriers can make some noise, they can be an impact team.
