OSWEGO, N.Y. – Oswego Women's Lacrosse returned home this afternoon to host the St. John Fisher Cardinals. A fast start from Fisher caught the Lakers on their heels, but they would adjust and settle in before the opening quarter ended. The Cardinals mounted an early lead on the scoreboard, but Oswego did not back down on the field, forcing multiple shot clock violations and winning most draws. An offensive surge in the beginning minutes of the fourth quarter would unfortunately be a little too little too late for the Lakers as they would fall 15-6 to a skilled St. John squad by the end of the match.
THE BASICS
Final Score: Oswego 6 (4-3, 0-0 SUNYAC), St. John Fisher 15 (4-2, 0-0 Empire 8)
Location: Laker Turf Stadium | Oswego, N.Y.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A fast start off the draw would give St. John Fisher their first taste of offense in the opening minute of the game, but a foul by a Cardinal midfielder would send the Lakers on offensive transition. A good one-handed snag by Madison Davis would give Oswego an early scoring chance, but they would unfortunately not finish. Fisher would shortly find their way back on offense once again and would notch the first point of the match at 12:34. It would not take long before the Cardinals struck again, capitalizing on a nifty cross-crease passing play less than a minute later at the 11:43 mark. The Lakers would not sweat it, controlling the following draw and answering promptly with a goal by senior Isabella Lembo at 11:02. A connected and physical Oswego defensive unit would give Farrah Zalla of Fisher a free position shot, which she would sneak between the legs of Laker netminder Sarah Kamide, extending their lead to 4-1 at 7:29. An equally physical Cardinal defense would award Julia Quirk a second goal for Oswego off a free position shot at 6:47. The Laker offense continued to chip away at Fisher's lead as the final minutes of the quarter ticked down. A strong high-to-low fake from Madison Davis would narrow the scoring deficit to just one goal 4:13, but the Cardinals would quickly regain their offensive momentum scoring their fifth goal of the game at 2:41 and a sixth at 0:45. Closing out the 1st quarter with a 6-3 scoreline in Fisher's favor.
As the second quarter got underway the Lakers remained vigilant on both defense and offense but were unable to breakthrough in the opening minutes of the quarter. Fisher midfielder Farrah Zalla would beat the shot clock by 3 seconds to notch a 7th goal for the Cardinals at 12:37. A succeeding draw control by Davis would send the Lakers on offense. Quirk would earn her second free position attempt of the game but would be rejected by Cardinal goalie Kaylee Gadol. The score would remain unphased for the few following minutes until St. John Fisher scored on the doorstep, making it 8-3 at the 8:06 mark. Isabella Lembo snuck one by the leg of Gadol after making an offensive surge into the right-side of the eight scoring a fourth point for Oswego at 5:09. The Cardinals would respond with a 10th goal just about two minutes later at 3:02. A turnover by Sela Wiley would be picked up by Fisher at 1:12 sending them in on offense. Despite a tenacious defensive effort in the final minute of play, the Cards would find the back of the net once more, finishing the half with score 11-4 still in their favor.
The third frame of play would commence with a successful draw won by Wiley and a strong shot on net by Lembo. Both teams would take turns in possession in the beginning minutes, but St. John Fisher would be the first to add to the scoreboard this quarter with a 12th goal at 9:49. Oswego would find some rhythm on offense in the following play, but an active Cardinal defensive unit shut down shooting angles and intercepted multiple passing plays. After a scoreless 5 minutes of play, a yellow card called on junior Sophia Ruschin would give Fisher a man-up advantage, on which they capitalized, adding to their nine-goal lead at 4:26. The third quarter with the score standing at 14-4.
Despite the growing goal deficit, the Lakers would not back down in the fourth. A nice pass from Davis found sophomore Noelle Smith in the center of the eight, sending her down Broadway on Gadol, tallying a fifth goal for Oswego 13:50. Ruschin won the following draw and added one of her own just a minute later, improving the scoreline to 14-6. Both the Lakers and Cardinals would take turns on offense but only Fisher would finish on net at 8:42. A persistent effort by Oswego at both ends of the field would keep Fisher at bay and the score remaining 15-6 as the final quarter came to a close.
WHAT'S NEXT
Oswego Women's Lacrosse will have a week to prepare before they host a conference matchup against the SUNY Potsdam Bears next Saturday, March 23rd at 12:00 PM.
Written By: Matilda Pethrick
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