OSWEGO, N.Y. – Oswego Women's Lacrosse returned to Laker Turf Stadium this afternoon to host the Russell Sage Gators. After falling to a skilled RIT squad last Friday, the Lakers came out ready to regain the winning momentum they found against Utica University. Despite losing the opening draw, it did not take long for Oswego to regain possession and mount a lead over the Gators. After mounting a comfortable 10-0 lead in the first quarter, the Lakers began to use the depth of their 27-man roster in the 2nd. Even with some new faces on the field, Oswego continued to add to the tally, heading into halftime with an unanswered 13-0 lead. The Lakers picked up where they left off before the intermission, adding 4 more goals to the board before Russell Sage notched their first late in the third quarter. A pair of goals by Oswego would send them into the final frame with a 19-1 advantage. A much quieter 4th quarter for the Lakers would award the Gators a second point, but that would just not be enough, falling to Oswego 20-2.
THE BASICS
Final Score:
Oswego 20 (2-1, 0-0 SUNYAC)
Russell Sage 2 (0-2, 0-0 Empire 8)
Location: Laker Turf Stadium | Oswego, N.Y.
HOW IT HAPPENED
An opening draw controlled by Gator Alexis Crossman would send Russell Sage down field into Oswego's defensive zone for the first possession of the game. A mishandled shovel pass between two Russell attackmen would be recovered and cleared out by Laker net minder Alana Iacovissi. A quick transition up field by Oswego would give them their first turn on offense and result in the first goal of the game scored by sophomore Cassidy Croce at 11:56. Graduate student Madison Davis followed suit adding a second tally to the board just 0:28 seconds later at 11:28. In the following minutes the Lakers really started to turn up the heat, capitalizing on passing plays in front of the Gators' net, extending their lead to 5-0 at the 8:49 mark. A brief offensive surge by Russell Sage would keep Iacovissi on her toes with a couple shots just wide of the net. As Oswego returned play up field, they continued to churn out goals adding their sixth and seventh unanswered goals to the scoreline just moments apart at 4:30. As the first-quarter clock began to tick down, a couple failed clear attempts by the Gators would allow the Lakers to maintain possession and their scoring regime. Finishing the 1st quarter with a comfortable 10-0 lead.
After mounting such a large lead in the first, it did not take long for Oswego Head Coach Britt Howard to make substitutions. Even with utilizing their bench players, the Lakers could not be stopped. First year, Aubrianna Green secured her first career goal and an eleventh goal for Oswego at the 10:39 mark of the second quarter. A couple minutes would pass before fellow first year, Addison Costello, would also notch her first career point, improving the scoreline to 12-0 at 5:30. A green card charged to junior Sadie Zemanick at the 1:45 mark would put Oswego at the disadvantage for the remainder of the quarter. Undeterred, the Lakers continued to bait the Gators on defense, adding a 13th goal before halftime.
A brief halftime would allow both teams to reconvene and catch their breath, which would be needed as Oswego did not let up in the beginning minutes of the 3rd quarter. Sadie Zemanick would make up for her card in the final moments of the first half with a goal in just 0:59 seconds into the third. Russell Sage would control the following draw, but not for long, as the Lakers wasted no time forcing a turnover and regaining offensive positioning. A few minutes later, senior Julia Quirk and sophomore Jaelynn Aldrich scored back-to-back points, extending the scoreline to 16-0 at 10:05. In spite of their seemingly unrecoverable deficit, the Gators continued to challenge Oswego on groundballs and began to gain some momentum, finding their first tally of the game just over a minute later at 6:21. The Lakers closed out the third quarter with another pair of goals, heading into the final frame with a 19-1 lead.
The fourth quarter would be a back-and-forth battle between the two teams, but Oswego continued to dominate. Dual-sport Laker Kathryn Salamida found her first career goal with 9:41 left to play. Despite their a last-ditch scoring effort by Russell Sage defenseman, Alexis Crossman, Oswego would pull away with a 20-2 victory over the Gators. The Lakers' sizeable win is accredited to 13 different point scorers including two 7-point performances from Madison Davis and Mackenzie Winn, and 4 first-career goals.
WHAT'S NEXT
Oswego Women's Lacrosse will have a week to prepare before hosting the Nazareth College Golden Flyers in Laker Turf Stadium, next Wednesday March 5th at 4:00 PM. Go Lakers!
Written By: Matilda Pethrick
@OswegoAthletics | FB: OswegoAthleticsOfficial | IG: oswegoathletics
